Dr. Fowler recommended educational programs for physicians as a tool to improve profitability. “Education gives a springboard to raise collections by sharing information and strategizing,” he said.
Dr. Glaser mentioned that urine testing for opioids was also a good ancillary. He warned, however, about managing ancillaries and not taking too much. “Lab is still a good ancillary source. It’s a standard of care for medication management and opioid management. There is nothing wrong with participating in lab profit, as long as it’s appropriate,” he added.
Ultimately, said Dr. Mortenson, it’s about using your medical practice and judgment for the patient population served to understand which ancillaries are appropriate and which have the potential to be good sources of additional revenue. Drs. Fowler and Glaser agreed.
“We get a lot of patients who don’t want IV sedation, and they like it. It’s a value added thing for us,” said Dr. Glaser.
“If we didn’t offer sedation, we would lose a lot of patients, because that’s just the way things are done where we are. Patients are used to a country club experience,” countered Dr. Fowler.
