Practice Management

The International Classification of Diseases, 10th Edition (ICD-10) code is scheduled for implementation in the U.S. on Oct. 1, 2015-less than a year from now. Many optometric practices will likely be unprepared and therefore at risk for serious claim-filing and cash flow problems, according to Rebecca Wartman, OD, the American Optometric Association's (AOA) point person on ICD-10.

The discussion of providing Saturday office hours can rile a group of ODs like few other topics. In the non-healthcare world, Saturdays are revered as a day off from the daily grind and a chance to spend time with family and friends.

During the Global Contact Lens Forum at Vision Expo West, Jeffrey Sonsino, OD, FAAO, shared tips on how to establish a specialty contact lens practice.

Many of the traditional descriptions we use for areas of our practices have become outdated. As things change in our practices, we tend to force new methods and techniques into old categories.

There are some great new products and technology trends that can help you manage your practice more efficiently and improve your patient care.

In this video, Dr. Scott Schachter discusses creating a dry eye center.

The general feeling is that the eyeglass patient is much more profitable to a practice then the contact lens patient. Let’s look at this misconception in some detail.

In the previous articles in this series, the focus of lowering your practice’s financial risk was through maximizing cash flow and retaining key employees. Risk avoidance and risk mitigation may seem like common sense, but sometimes are not always intuitive when your day-to-day concentration is on patient care and running a practice. Identifying your practice’s risk should be a disciplined and creative process that includes brainstorming and creating lists of negative financial implications. All thoughts and ideas are welcomed during this evaluation, and the more thorough your checklists and evaluations are, the easier it is to make decisions to accept the risks of each activity.

Do you spend time wondering why employees no-show or resign? Do you think about how employee retention and turnover affects your bottom line? Today’s employees leave jobs for reasons other than just compensation and benefits, and tend to leave managers/co-workers than actual companies. Owners should provide vision, empowerment, empathy, motivation, teamwork, fun, and incentives so employees feel they have an ownership in the business.

I'm obsessed with Steven Pressfield's writings. I've mentioned Do The Work before, and now I want to mention the second book in the series: Turning Pro. It spoke to me. In a short 1-sentence summary, the difference between an amateur and a pro: a pro, through hours and years of practice and training, can block out all the clutter and concentrate on the task at hand.

Medscape has released its third-annual list of the best and worst big cities and small towns in the United States to practice, based on lifestyle, climate, practice conditions, and amenities. So did your city make the list?

My son, a recent graduate of the University of Alabama’s film school, does freelance video work. It is a cool way to pay his bills, and a fella has to start somewhere. On occasion I get to be his unpaid production assistant, which is to say I stand in the background and hold the microphone.

During the Contact Lens Global Forum, a partnership between Vision Expo East and the British Contact Lens Association, Justin Bazan, OD, Optometry Times Editorial Advisory Board member, offered up tips for using e-mail and social media to build and maintain your patient base.

Since I began my practice, I have made a habit of regular office retreats. Even in the early days, with a staff of 1, we found time to get away and talk about what we were trying to accomplish with the practice. And later, with 3 doctors and very full schedules, we continued to make it happen.

These days, many of your patients likely found your practice online through a Google search. Alan Glazier, OD, shared tips at SECO for improving your practice’s standing on a Google search to bring in more patients.

In the fourth of our video series on Demodex, Dr. Mario Gutierrez offers practice management suggestions in treating patients with the mite. Plus, he gets into a mite-killing mood.

Simple, but effective, tips can help doctors use online feedback to build a practice.

Malpractice litigation against optometrists is rare. To keep it that way, optometrists must take the proper steps to reduce any risk of such litigation, especially when dealing with patients with retinal detachments, amblyopia, contact lenses, glaucoma, and tumors.

The majority of cataract patients will be diagnosed by an optometrist with whom they have a long-standing relationship. This is highlighted by statistics that show that cataract surgery is the most frequently performed surgery in the United States, with some estimates stating that by 2020 more than 30 million Americans will have at least one cataract.

Some optometrists are very aware of the role of nutrition in systemic and eye health and give it a prominent role in discussions with patients; others may refer to it only peripherally while reviewing a patient history form.

Convenience and service are two of the primary reasons optometric practices explore adding an in-office finishing lab, but they are by no means the only reasons.

As the technology arms race proceeds, having a Web site no longer constitutes being on the cutting edge for an optometric practice.

Is the independent optometrist being threatened much like small bookstores and neighborhood pharmacies?

Telemedicine offers a number of patient benefits, and the exchange of clinical information enhances the delivery of patient care.

Special events are an effective way for optometrists to boost their bottom line and differentiate themselves from the competition.

Medcal coding is one of the most important aspects of an optometry practice, yet it usually gets the least attention.

All optometry practices experience change of one sort or another.