Revenue
1. Offer physical therapy and imaging services onsite. Consider adding physical therapy or imaging services to the practice because those services are convenient for the patients and require very little of a surgeon’s time, says Michael Franks of Physician Business Services in Tampa, Fla. The onsite physical therapist can oversee a large portion of the non-surgical or rehabilitative care so the physician can focus on performing surgeries. Offering physical therapy and imaging services onsite is also convenient for the patient and has the potential to bring extra revenue into the practice. However, before adding these services, practice administrators should assess whether the additions are practical.
“Look at how much the new technology will cost, whether it can be leased and over what period of time and whether there is a place for it,” says Mr. Franks. “If you will lose an exam room to house the additional technology, you take away from the value of the product. You also need to consider who will staff that machine and who will schedule patients to use it. If you’re doing things correctly and building a business model, you’ll have been doing that before the decision is made.”
2. Keep your practice lean. Lean methodology is not a new concept, but sports medicine physicians should continuously work toward making their respective practices as efficient as possible. Especially with the influx of newly covered patients — a result of the new healthcare reform law — sports medicine physicians will want to be mindful of how to cater to a greater patient population without necessary hiring a larger space or spending more money on staffing or other overhead costs.
“Staff members in [a sports medicine office] can help the physician gather clinical information for the physician’s review so that it’s not up to the physician to do all of those duties anymore,” says Craig Westin, MD, of Illinois Bone and Joint Institute and the Chicago Center for Orthopedics at Weiss Hospital in Chicago. “Electronic medical records offer a great opportunity if we can partner with the technical side to get a record that is effective and efficient for clinical practice.
With the emergence of physician assistants and nurse practitioners, sports medicine physicians may find an opportunity to make their practices even more efficient by hiring a midlevel practitioner who can assist in some of the technical and clinical responsibilities, Dr. Westin says.
Patient volume
3. Open Saturday morning sports injury clinics year-round. While many practices already have sports Saturday sports injury clinics open during the fall sports and football seasons, Angie Van Utrecht, director of operations at Orthopedic Specialists in Davenport, Iowa, says successful sports medicine practices should offer these clinics to athletes all year. The Saturday morning clinics can be helpful to athletes beyond football players, such as basketball players and weekend warriors. If these individuals know the clinic is available, they are likely to utilize its services when an injury occurs. As Ms. Van Utrecht points out, “soccer, basketball and volleyball (which are fall sports) have the highest rate of ACL tears.” Cheerleaders and track athletes are also likely to incur injuries during the winter and spring seasons.
4. Give public lectures at sports clubs or gyms. Collaborate with a local sports club or gym to give a presentation on the best practices for nursing injuries, staying healthy and keeping a nutritious lifestyle. “Typically, the population that attends these sorts of events are the middle and older age group,” says James N. Gladstone, MD, co-chief of sports medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. “I often find that people come in and their knees hurt because they are overweight. They want to lose the weight but can’t run. We can be helpful in offering alternatives based on the patient’s specific ability.” Some of these alternatives include dieting, walking, swimming and bicycling. Dr. Gladstone also emphasizes stretching among his older patients, especially if they only occasionally engage in sporting activities. While the information isn’t necessarily sports-related, the surgeon is still building a reputation among a potential patient-base.
5. Offer free preseason physicals. If physicians can identify physical deformities or the potential for overuse injuries, they can create an individual workout plan for an athlete based on the athlete’s condition. This includes providing advice for appropriate conditioning and exercise techniques for someone with flatfoot deformity, identifying the right sized equipment for each athlete and instructing left-handed pitchers about preserving their arm, as the natural deliver of many left-handed pitchers incurs increased stress on the rotator cuff. Many states require this type of preseason physical; an orthopedic or sports medicine practice can achieve an edge over other practices by offering a “free” preseason clinic day for young athletes. While the initial physical is free, the athletes establish a relationship with practice physicians for the future.
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