January 24, 2022 Puzzle Piece
Assess Your Revenue Cycle like you assess your patient’s Spine by Brandy Brimhall, CPC, CMCO, CCCPC, CPCO, CPMA
Did
you know that your Revenue Cycle System is part of the foundation to
your practice? Just the same as a structure that’s being built,
ensuring a solid foundation is critical to the life of the building
being constructed. After all, additional stories or features may not be
possible if the foundation is unstable, cracked or weak.
Healthcare providers often find through trial and error that managing
the revenue cycle is an entire piece to the puzzle all of its own,
requiring additional time, training and attention. And taking time from
their patients to manage this element of the practice is
counterproductive to achieving the overall mission – to care for more
patients and make a great living doing it.
And CAs, even seasoned and experienced CAs, may find themselves
overwhelmed and short on time to adequately tend to the many functions
of the revenue cycle system in addition to other necessary job duties
that often require immediate attention. Though more often than not,
CA’s aren’t fully trained on revenue cycle management and may not even
initially know upon hire that these tasks were going to be part of their
role. Of course, there is a cause and effect to all of this - -
- Increasing Accounts Receivables
- Claims delays/rejections/denials
- Insurance
verifications that aren’t consistent with claims processing data (or
perhaps, no time to complete insurance verifications at all)
- Over-the-counter collections slipping through the cracks, and thus, growing patient balances
- Cumbersome or ineffective patient invoicing systems
- Mistakes in coding (yes, even for your self-pay patients!)
- Revenue cycle management on a touch-and-go basis
- Confusion, frustration and uncertainty among team members along with the spinning of wheels over practice challenges
- And the list goes on…
In practice, not only do we want to be efficient and profitable, we also want to be in the best position to keep the money we’ve made. Each
of those items described in the bullets above (among others), increase
this risk and vulnerability for practices as well as cost valuable time
and money.
Now, when establishing any foundation, for a structure or a business,
those necessary essential components simply must not be overlooked.With
the revenue cycle, this means improved over-the-counter collections, a
healthy and manageable Accounts Receivable, sufficient time and
attention to the entire revenue cycle system, improved practice/patient
relationships, and so much more.
If some of the obstacles discussed in this article are feeling familiar
to you, the great news is that there is a solution. First, a practice
must be proactive in taking necessary action steps now – before time and
money is list or vulnerability increases. Options for you to consider
on your path forward:
- Evaluate
your entire revenue cycle system (assessment checklist attached).
Next, work together with your team to identify and prioritize necessary
steps forward. Seek qualified training to strengthen your team and
confidence in your practice systems. Be accountable as a leader and
hold those same expectations for your team members.
OR
- Consider
your practice strengths and weaknesses as it relates to the revenue
cycle system. Consider your practice history in this respect as well as
your future goals and expectations. If you find that critical
functions of the revenue cycle system have been an ongoing struggle and
repair of this seems overwhelming, perhaps outsourcing your billing
(even temporarily if you wish) may be the best next step to consider for
your practice. After all, we hire an accountant for accounting needs,
an attorney for legal needs and other professionals for their efficiency
and training in their skill set. Your practice revenue cycle is no
different at all!
In
closing, take a few minutes to complete the Revenue Cycle Assessment
Checklist attached! This will help you to measure the health of your
own practice foundation. If your practice is seeking training,
materials and general support for your revenue cycle system or if you
decide that you’d like to learn more about outsourced billing, I’d love
to help!
Reach out to learn more at [email protected]!
Brandy Brimhall, CPC, CMCO, CCCPC, CPCO, CPMA
www.CHelpDesk.com
Yours in Health and Wellness,
John W Brimhall, DC, BA, BS, FIAMA, DIBAK
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