1. Become involved in professional research and organizations. Surgeon involvement in professional orthopedic organizations can promote connections between practices and build the surgeon’s reputation. Surgeons can remain active by conducting academic research, publishing papers and attending professional conferences and meetings. “We think it’s really important for our physicians to be as academic as possible,” says Todd Albert, MD, spine surgeon and president of Rothman Institute in Philadelphia. “Our physicians speak nationally to other professionals. It helps differentiate our center as having really good surgeons who are also academically interested and full of knowledge about orthopedics.”
2. Maintain dedication to education. “We encourage employees to undergo advanced training and education for higher level careers in healthcare. Many of our medical assistants have gone on to become physician assistants or medical doctors because the education they received at Virginia Spine Institute revealed career opportunities,” says Thomas Schuler, MD, a spine surgeon, founded the Virginia Spine Institute. Many new employees train to become medical assistants, or achieve a higher level of understanding of their jobs. Educational advancement is encouraged even if it means the employee leaves the organization to take another job. The network of people connected to the practice expands, which is good for business. “Encouraging people to take advanced education improves our teamwork and makes us local and national leaders,” says Dr. Schuler.
3. Host educational lunches for primary care physicians. One way to coordinate a face-to-face meeting with several primary care physicians in your area is to host an educational luncheon. Have each orthopedic surgeon give a presentation about their subspecialty, such as going over MRI for shoulder surgery or when to get epidural instead of recommending surgery for back problems. The lunch also fosters an environment where the physicians can get to know each other. “The surgeon is able to shake hands with the primary care physician and their staff,” says Peter Althausen, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at Reno Orthopaedic Clinic and chairman of the board of directors of The Orthopaedic Implant Company. Bring the practice office manager to the lunches to ensure your practice will be easily accessible for the primary care physicians.
4. Focus on your patient population and refer others away. Look at your community demographics and decide whether it would be profitable to exclusively market your practice to one type of surgery or demographics. For example, some practices choose to focus on the baby boomer population. “If you want to go for this population, consider how they fit in with what you are already doing and decide whether you need to do something different to focus on them,” says Lee H. Igel, PhD, clinical assistant professor at New York University. This change in tactic could mean focusing only on baby boomers and turning away younger patients who seek treatment. Turning away one population of patients gives the physicians and practice staff time and energy to focus on the target population. “It helps to figure out who to say ‘no’ to so you can refer those patients to another physician,” he says. “You can build a network by saying ‘no’ to people and gain a reputation among other physicians that way.”
