Keith A. Reynolds

With all the useful information available on Physicians Practice, it is easy to become overwhelmed.

With this in mind, the tip of the week is a chance to reflect on some of the wisdom found all across the site. In a February 2021 story on how to make winter storm damage insurance claims, Ike Devji, JD writes the following:

“It’s vital that you are adequately insured for both liability and loss, including property damage, contents, and business interruption, among others. Make sure you understand vital policy details like the difference between being covered for replacement cost (the dollar amount needed to replace a damaged item with one of similar kind and quality, 

) and actual cash value (which pays only the amount needed to replace the item at its current market value 

It’s vital that you are adequately insured for both liability and loss, including property damage, contents, and business interruption, among others.

Most polices require you to take reasonable measures to prevent further damage to your property like covering a hole in a roof with temporary shelter, calling 

a qualified and licensed restoration contractor

As is reasonably possible, document the damage to your home and/or office with an inventory of any damaged items you can immediately spot, including personal property in your home, damage to vehicles and medical equipment, fixtures, signage, and office equipment, as well as documenting any appointments that had to be cancelled and other loss of revenue related to the damage.”

 to read the rest of the article and be sure to check back next week for another 

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Your weekly dose of wisdom from the Physicians Practice experts.

Practice tip of the week: How to make winter storm damage insurance claims

With this in mind, the tip of the week is a chance to reflect on some of the wisdom found all across the site. In a February 2021 story on 

learning a new language to benefit a physician’s practice

“Are you looking for new ways that your physician’s practice can innovate to attract new patients? Do you also want to make a change that will help you be the best healthcare practitioner you can be?

Here is how mastering a foreign language can benefit your practice and you, yourself, as a physician:

1). Reach and attract a whole new market of potential patients

2). Be the best healthcare practitioner you can be

3). It physically changes your brain for the better

4). It will give you a morale boost in today’s pandemic era”

 for the rest article. Be sure to come back next week for another Tip of the Week!

Practice tip of the week: Learning a new language can benefit a physician’s practice

With this in mind, the tip of the week is a chance to reflect on some of the wisdom found all across the site. In a February 2021 story on five reasons why doctors should become wound care specialists, Gayle Morris, BSN, MSN writes the following:

“Senior populations are growing rapidly and will need increased quality medical care. Along with this growth comes an increased need for quality medical care, especially in areas such as wound care and pressure ulcers. Becoming certified in wound care can help doctors in many ways. Here are just five:

 - understanding how to treat wounds and pressure ulcers expands a doctor’s knowledge base in a way that is increasingly needed.

 - pressure ulcers have recently attracted the attention of the medicolegal community. Some courts regard pressure ulcers as evidence of elder abuse, and following this precedent, in 2008 the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services instituted a policy to withhold reimbursement to acute-care hospitals for the costs of treating pressure ulcers.

 - The National Library of Medicine recognizes pressure ulcers as a relevant contributor to hospital stays. They write, “Pressure ulcers make a significant independent contribution to excess length of hospitalization beyond what might be expected based on admission diagnosis.”

 - Compared to patients who do not develop pressure ulcers, patients who develop pressure ulcers are more likely to develop nosocomial infections and other hospital complications.

 - As patients with many medical conditions may be at higher risk for pressure ulcers, it is important that physicians recognize that even in the ambulatory care environment appropriate prevention and detection strategies are needed.

Practice tip of the week: Five reasons why doctors should become wound care specialists

five telephone etiquette tips for medical practice staff

“Patient frustration and anger are generally the result of unmet expectations. It follows, therefore, that the fundamental task in improving patients' satisfaction is to manage and then meet their expectations. How your practice handles telephonic communication with patients provides four excellent examples.

Offer to take a message if you are not immediately prepared to deal with the caller

Ask if the patient can hold and wait for his answer, before putting him on hold.

Don’t let the phone ring a half dozen times.

When taking a message, tell the caller when there will be a response.

Practice tip of the week: Five Telephone Etiquette Tips for Medical Practice Staff

With this in mind, the tip of the week is a chance to reflect on some of the wisdom found all across the site. In a February 2021 story 

on your practice with artificial intelligence

“Gone are the days when the term artificial intelligence (AI) brought images of robots to your mind. 

 calls AI a self-running engine for growth in healthcare and when combined, key clinical health AI applications could help the US healthcare economy save up to $150 billion in annual savings by 2026. The AI health market is predicted to touch $6.6 billion by 2021 at a compounded annual growth rate of 40%. AI can perform administrative as well as clinical healthcare functions with equal ease.

Clearly, AI-driven patient engagement can do a lot of good for your practice than you would ever imagine.

Screening heaps of data to provide actionable insights for physicians to make better decisions that improve outcomes while boosting patient engagement.

Accelerating care delivery and enabling interventions early on with the help of analytics.

Identifying and rectifying bottlenecks that impede patient satisfaction.

Converting unstructured data (notes, voice memos, etc.) with the help of natural language processing (NLP) to save physicians from laborious manual data entry work.”

Practice tip of the week: Boost your practice with artificial intelligence

on transitioning your practice to your children

“Conversations around the next generation of leadership are inherently more complicated and emotional due to family dynamics, individual expectations, and financial concerns. In the end, there are several major reasons that transitions from the founding physician to the succeeding son or daughter tend to fail:

Lack of will: the founding physician simply doesn’t want to give up control

Lack of viability: the practice is so dependent on the founding physician that it cannot operate without his or her continued, active participation

Lack of planning: the successors aren't prepared, trained or experienced enough to take over management of the practice

So, how then should you start the succession planning process and transitioning of the practice to your children? Consider these key focus areas:

Formalize the succession process; prepare an exit plan

Groom the successor; respect the transition of power”