Setting 2023 Goals to Maintain Your Independent Specialty Practice

With the new year comes exciting new possibilities. Independent specialty practices have opportunities for innovation, new system implementation, and preparation for the long-term future of healthcare, including the shift to a value-based care model. However, running independent medical practices is as challenging as it is rewarding. Staffing, medical supply costs, prior authorizations, and increasing overhead making it hard for busy providers and practice managers to find time to plan for the future.

Thankfully, independent practices don’t have to feel overwhelmed as they try to juggle new opportunities while also managing the responsibilities and demands of providing patient care. Integrating technology into their processes and bringing in a dedicated expert partner can reduce the administrative burdens placed on practice leaders, allowing them to focus on setting and meeting their 2023 goals. 

So, what goals can independent medical practices set for 2023, and how can they use technology to help meet them? Read on to find out.

7 Goals for Independent Specialty Practices in 2023

Running any successful specialty practice such as oncology, orthopedics, or cardiology requires paying attention to both your business and your patients. One of the most significant strains on independent practices—especially the more complex specialties, is finding the right balance between patient-focused operations and financial security. Making time to set new goals in 2023 to find and maintain this critical balance can motivate staff, increase the quality of care and facilitate growth and success.

Here are seven goals you might want to take on in the new year:

1. Improve billing

Fee-for-service reimbursement models involve fragmented billing processes, which cause inefficiencies in the overall system. Furthermore, traditional billing systems require providers, practice managers, and administrative staff to spend inordinate amounts of time inputting demographic and financial information, recording financial adjustments, collecting outstanding fees, and speaking on the phone with insurance companies.

Modernizing billing systems by using specialized billing and payment technology like TRIARQ Health’s RCM software and services can help independent medical practices improve time management and efficiency in the medical billing process. TRIARQ Health’s software handles all parts of the revenue management cycle, including:

• Payer Billing: Automated billing processes, tailored workflows, live dashboards, cash flow analysis, and coding assessment and coaching.
• Patient RCM: Payment automation, payment policies and procedures creation, follow-up protocols, financing, and payment plans, collections, and case consulting.

2. Effectively manage prior authorizations

One of the most significant strains on independent practices—especially specialties like oncology, cardiology, and orthopedics—is prior authorizations. Prior authorizations can easily consume up to 16 hours, or approximately ½ FTE of staff time each week, causing inefficiencies and disturbing patient care workflows.

Partnering with a management services organization (MSO) like TRIARQ Health removes the burden of submitting paperwork and sitting through phone calls from the physician and their staff, allowing them to focus on providing high-quality patient care.

3. Improve Office Workflows

Workflows designed to provide multiple services can quickly become bogged down and inefficient, negatively affecting the patient and staff experience. Using technology to improve office workflows allows practices to automate key processes and shift to a patient-centric care model.

For example, TRIARQ Health’s Care Pathways platform streamlines workflows and facilitates value-based care through:

• Automated care plans
• Centralized document management dashboards
• Software for easy collaborative communication
• Dashboards with real-time utilization

4. Manage patient visits and reduce no-shows

Managing patient visits can burden administrative staff significantly and reduce practice efficiency. Canceled or rescheduled visits can send administrative staff scrambling to make phone calls to fill gaps in the schedule, taking away from other important tasks and duties.

Using technology to manage patient visits can remove these frustrations. According to a study conducted by the Department of Primary Care and Social Medicine at the Imperial College of London, timely appointment reminders reduce the number of no-shows by 38%. Software that includes a sophisticated appointment scheduler allows providers to set up automated scheduled email or phone call appointment reminders, reducing no-shows and last-minute cancellations.

Providers can further benefit from a mobile app like TRIARQ Health’s QMobile app, which allows providers and administrative staff to view, update, or cancel scheduled appointments with just a few taps. Practices can easily contact patients from their profile in the app with just a tap of a finger.

5. Streamline Prescription Ordering

The traditional ordering methods require providers to scribble scripts for their patients during each appointment hastily.

Technology allows physicians to streamline prescription ordering through fast, convenient, and accurate electronic prescriptions. ePrescribing features pre-filled medication names, dosages, and instructions and enables physicians to order quickly using a saved electronic signature for approval. This technology will automatically integrate into state-mandated safety programs like PDMP and EPCS to better manage controlled substances.

6. Simplify staffing management

To ensure tasks and orders are completed in a timely fashion, clinicians and managers have to manage staff, assign and manage tasks, and monitor physicians’ orders to follow up on assignments. 

Utilizing TRIARQ Health’s practice management software gives providers and management access to an electronic task manager to assign tasks to specific employees and track completion through an easy-to-use interface.

7. Take on value-based care contracts

Partnering with TRIARQ Health provides technology and processes that allow providers to succeed in transitioning to value-based care. 

TRIARQ Health utilizes integrated care teams, the QPathways Cloud Platform, and a unique Care Pathways approach with powerful live collaboration tools to help physicians provide better, more consistent patient care. TRIARQ Health systems will help physicians prepare to take on value-based care contracts, drive better patient outcomes, and help build equity through bundled contracts.

Partner with TRIARQ Health to successfully plan for 2023 and beyond 

Setting concrete goals and using technology to facilitate change are crucial to the success of independent practices, especially those seeking to shift to a value-based care model. When specialty practices improve their quality of care, shift their focus to patient-centric workflows, and improve patient outcomes, they can be successful now and in the future.

Busy independent medical practices seeking to shift to value-based care for 2023 can benefit from using an MSO like TRIARQ Health. We provide technology, processes, and teams of experts to help practices take on challenges, meet their goals, and achieve success.

To learn more about how TRIARQ Health can help you provide better quality care, improve patient relationships, optimize your workflow, and maximize your opportunities to grow your revenue, request a call with one of our experts today.