After the Covid-19 pandemic and subsequent supply-chain disruptions, cost increases impacted nearly every professional sector. Medicine was no different. In fact, one study found that even as inflation slowed across the country, medical groups continued to pay more. Even though inflation may be cooling, that doesn’t mean prices are coming down for medical practices. A slow-down in inflation only means prices aren’t rising as fast anymore. That also means it’s important that doctors look for every avenue possible to lower operating costs, be it in overhead, personnel, or technology. Without profitability, doctors cannot sustain their practices, and one of the best ways to improve the bottom line is by keeping costs in line. These are four ideas that may work for your practice.
Technology helps doctors lower operating costs
Most medical practices have adopted improved forms of technology over the past few years, but as that technology improves, there may be opportunities to make your practice even more efficient. Incorporating technology into payment processes can significantly reduce the time and effort spent on collecting money from patients and insurance companies. By offering online payment options on the practice’s website, such as payment links, doctors can streamline the payment collection process, eliminating the need to handle physical checks and credit card payments manually. Additionally, implementing text messaging for appointment reminders can save valuable staff time, allowing employees to focus on more critical tasks. Even implementing better technology for telehealth visits can boost revenues while helping lower operating costs.
Current employees can help lower operating costs
One way doctors can lower operating costs is by increasing production while improving employee efficiency. Here are a few strategies to achieve this:
- Don’t Waste Downtime: Encourage your employees to use their downtime to contact inactive patients and invite them back to the practice. They can also call patients who have visited but have not yet accepted previously discussed treatment plans.
- Cross-Train Employees: Cross-training employees ensures that you can meet peak patient demand without having to hire additional staff. This flexibility allows for smoother operations and increased productivity.
- Encourage Patient Referrals: Instruct your staff to routinely ask patients for referrals, which can help boost new patient flow and expand your practice.
Improve processes to lower costs
Many businesses can fall into a lull when they use the same processes over and over again without any sort of analysis of whether those processes could be improved. The same is true for doctors and their businesses. For instance, are there bottlenecks in your practice that could be cleaned out by a better process? Reviewing patient flow, or appointment scheduling, or how you communicate with patients may offer ways to improve how your practice functions. Other ideas are to review some of the standard operating procedures in place at your practice. Does your staff have complete training on all technology, or are they only using half of the benefits of the systems in place? Last, is there a culture of improvement throughout your practice? Having a staff that feels empowered to offer suggestions for better processes can help doctors who need to keep their focus on patient health.
Keep marketing powerful and low cost
Doctors who run successful practices always use marketing to reach new and existing patients. That doesn’t mean marketing has to be a burdensome cost on your practice. There are a number of ways to lower operating costs of your practice just by using marketing tools that don’t break the bank. Here are two easy examples:
- Online Reviews: One of the best ways to reach new and existing patients is by encouraging, and then responding to, online reviews of your medical practice. Of all the marketing strategies available, online reviews allow you to talk directly with patients, while also building a strong reputation.
- Blogs & Content: Doctors have a wealth of knowledge that patients are eager to digest. While it may feel like a lot of extra work, doctors who can find an hour or two each week to write blogs about interesting medical topics specific to their practice area can do a lot to improve the marketing of the practice. Not only can those blogs keep your website alive and active, they can also be used for promotion on every social media channel you have. If you don’t feel like writing, another great form of content is through videos. Just turn on the camera and talk about something important to your area of practice. Video content goes a long way toward becoming a trusted expert in your field.
To have a sustainable, profitable medical practice, doctors should also understand that keeping costs in check sometimes means taking a hard look at areas where those costs can be trimmed. Using the right technology is vital these days. Having a staff that is cross-trained to handle multiple tasks can save payroll expenses and often makes your staff feel more valuable. Meanwhile, it’s important to review your practice’s processes with a critical eye, and that includes the money you spend on marketing.
