Practice Management

When there's conflict among the troops, it can get ugly in a hurry.

Value-based purchasing actually has little to do with outcomes in patient care, and has more to do with cost-containment in health care delivery.

The federal government is pressing forward with an initiative launched by the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) to implement a national system of electronic prescriptions intended to increase both efficiency and patient safety.

Most urologists have patients who come from many different backgrounds, speak different languages, and have different attitudes toward Western medicine.

The Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI) is a program established at the end of last year to provide incentive funding for physicians to begin submitting data that will be used to make Medicare a smarter purchaser of health care.

Many physicians are concerned and confused about all the discussion on pay for performance, and urologists are no exception.

Life in the fast lane of a busy urology practice can often be plagued with telephone traffic that is out of control.

Performing a non-ASC-approved procedure in an ASC is billed by the physician for the physician's service(s) at an outpatient procedure rate with ASC listed as the place of service.

Urologists have largely been under the radar as the quality industry has focused on non-urologic diseases. That is rapidly changing.

Communication of charges from the physician or mid-level provider to the billing staff is often a weak link in the billing process in a physician's office.

As the Bush administration continues to push for greater expenditures for national defense and the war in Iraq, Medicare physicians are facing a tighter squeeze in the name of stabilizing the program for future generations and giving patients more information about their health care providers.

In an age of declining reimbursements for traditional physician services-eyeball to eyeball with patients or standing at the operating table-many physicians are looking for replacement sources of income to keep their small businesses healthy.

Although there are many ways to expand a practice, it's what you do inside your office that matters the most.

Communication of charges from the physician or mid-level provider to the billing staff is often a weak link in the billing process in a physician's office.

CMS may grant, upon request, a repayment schedule of at least 6 months if repaying within 30 days would constitute a hardship.

Codes vary by cancer type, but liability for bladder Ca diagnosis rests with the doctor

Looking at your practice's monthly finances, focusing on big expenses, and wondering how you can cut them is a response typical among urologists concerned with a shrinking bottom line.

Looking at your practice's monthly finances, focusing on big expenses, and wondering how you can cut them is a response typical among urologists concerned with a shrinking bottom line.

The United States is witnessing a consolidation of physicians into groups, and urology is no exception. AUA estimates that only 22% of its members in 2006 are in solo practice (down from 48% in 2003).

Washington-Changes in federal policy that could hinder urologists' ability to provide in-office imaging services to patients appear to be on the way, threatening to toss another punch at physicians already confronting hefty Medicare fee schedule reductions in 2007.

Managers and the billing departments of most urology practices strive to get the money off the books and into the bank, but managing accounts receivable continues to be a daunting task that absorbs a fair amount of resources. This article offers a few practical tips that will make managing accounts receivable a lot easier.

If possible, contracts based on straight percentage of Medicare should be avoided.

National Report-With another year of Medicare payment cuts looming in 2007, declining reimbursement is no surprise as the number one current concern among practicing urologists, according to an exclusive survey from Urology Times and its sister publication, Contemporary Urology. Changes in reimbursement are followed closely by malpractice, office overhead, pay for performance, and increasing regulations as the top five issues that urologists are extremely or very concerned about, the first State of the Specialty survey found.

What is considered the usual postoperative bleeding time following a transurethral resection of the prostate?

New York-Urology practices that have not started performing office-based surgery (OBS) are missing significant advantages in scheduling, convenience, and compensation.

It is not enough to maintain control over the profitability of your practice. In order to gain control, you need to know the cost of each procedure you perform in the office, the reimbursement from each of your payers, and the profit margin for each service you offer your patients.

To be an effective marketer, you must nurture and promote your professional image: Sell yourself as well as your practice.

Washington-On Aug. 8, 2006, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released a proposal to reform the Medicare ambulatory surgical center payment system beginning Jan. 1, 2008, and the news for urology appears to be mixed.

Atlanta-Operating room-based procedures continue to make up a significant proportion of urologists' practice, despite a predominance of office-based clinical practice, data from the American Board of Urology indicate.