Practice Management

You want to take some time off from your practice, maybe a day or two here and there, maybe for an extended leave, and you want to hire a temporary worker (also known as a fill-in doctor, relief doctor, or locum tenens). The relationship with a locum can be rewarding or frustrating. You have the power to make it successful, but it does take some preparation and planning.

Disaster struck on a recent Sunday evening. A tree branch fell on some power lines just above the practice, and the live wires fell onto the building, starting the blaze. I arrived on scene as the firefighters were putting out the blaze.

In the digital age, having a website can mean the difference between failure and success, but having a website means little if a practice's target audience doesn't see it

Warby Parker may be optometry’s public enemy number one, but David Friedfeld, owner of ClearVision Optical, says optometrists could learn a lot from the company’s booming success.

Everybody’s talking about millennials. They’re self-obsessed and entitled. They’re useless without their smartphones and social media. They’re debt-laden and broke. They’re lazy. They often have roommates, and they call them “Mom” and “Dad.” Wow, millennials are the worst. So-are you ready to hire one?

Essilor recently announced it had acquired independent optometric service alliance Vision Source, raising questions about the future for thousands of Vision Source members and Essilor customers across the country.

Over the past few years, we have seen rapid change in health care and specifically in eye care. Unfortunately, changes are often slower than the demand or need, and we often have mediocre results at best.

Your patients are conditioned to believe that if they take their Rx and just buy it online, they are going to get the best deal. That may have been a partial truth in the past, but today, you are often times able to offer your patients the best deal.

Having an understanding of cultural norms can help identify and mitigate many of the cultural barriers that negatively impact quality and perpetuate disparities in health and health care, especially among racial and ethnic populations who frequently are at increased risk for certain ocular morbidities like glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.

Running an eyecare practice can be complicated.

A new service wants to bring the staffing and hiring best practices from some of the most successful companies in the world to eye care.

What does it mean to have a premium practice? What does premium customer service deliver? These are common questions posed to medical practices and businesses as they seek out advice on how to thrive in today’s ever-competitive environment.

Several years ago, our office was facing a space crunch. We were out of room for our charts. We’d used every spare inch of available floor space for cabinets, and those cabinets were full.

The decision to own your own optometric practice is likely one of the biggest decisions you have made in your lifetime. And the decisions you will make regarding your exit strategy will most likely be just as challenging and possibly even more difficult.

The landscape of cataract surgery has changed rapidly-first with premium intraocular lenses (IOLs) and now additional refractive cataract options such as laser-assisted cataract surgery (LACS) and intraoperative aberrometry.

Katie Gilbert Spear, OD, MPH, and April Jasper, OD, FAAO, have found a way to succed in the face of managed vision care challenges and shared some tips at a presentation during SECO.

During a presentation at SECO, Mark Wright, OD, FCOVD, outlined 10 common practice management mistakes that are affecting your patients’ experience and your bottom line.

During a presentation at SECO, Adam Parker, OD, shared his advice for using mobile payment apps at an optometric practice.

When you’re caring for your patients and running your practice from day to day, legal protection may not be at the front of your mind, but there are steps you can take to protect yourself and your practice from litigation.

I‘m sitting in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, in mid-January. The temperature is 70 degrees, sunny and bright, and I’m reading online about impending cold and snow back in New York. I just called my office for an update on the practice, and I’m thinking how glad I am to be here.

“How do you give raises to your staff?” This is a common question among ODs. I have learned after several years of working with eyecare practices that we are all over the place in how we compensate our staffs.

Many eyecare providers use some type of electronic health records (EHR) system by now. I also realize that almost all eyecare providers seem to have complaints about whatever system they use and quite a few would prefer to go back to paper charts.

A Vancouver optometrist has accused online review website Yelp of extortion, according to The Globe and Mail.

A recent report from Accenture says two thirds of U.S. health systems will offer self-scheduling services online by 2019.

The new rule in Tennessee has reignited a debate across the country about similar rules creating a separation-both physical and professional-between ODs and retail spaces.

Check out our most-read stories of the whole year.

We recently asked some ODs what they think are the biggest challenges facing the profession in 2015 and beyond. Here’s our list of seven challenges-and we think all are important.

You can be the best clinician in the world, but if you cannot effectively run a business, you are likely to struggle. Having the right office manager is a key part of that success.