4 outsourcing solutions that could make your practice better

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4 Outsourcing SolutionsThat Could Make Your Practice Better

KAREO | @GoKareo; #KareoTip

Our Schedule for Today…

1 Introduction & Welcome Audrey

2 4 outsourcing Solutions that Could Make Your Practice Better

3 Discover Kareo’s Role

4 Answer Questions


Your Hosts Today…

Audrey McLaughlin, RNwww.physicianspracticeexpert.com

Lea ChathamContent Marketing Manager, Kareo


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Audrey McLaughlin, RN

Creator of www.physicianspracticeexpert.com

CEO, McLaughlin Sales Group

Developed Customer Service from the Heart

More than 12 years experience in healthcare consulting and sales

Author and speaker seen in publications like Physicians Practice

Audrey McLaughlin

www.physicianspracticeexpert.com




2 4 Outsourcing Solutions that Could Make Your Practice Better


4 Answer Questions


What we are covering today

Pros and cons of outsourcing

Specific services you may consider outsourcing

Incoming calls

Outbound calls

Eligibility and pre-authorization

Social media management/online marketing

When outsourcing may be right for your practice


Outsourcing is the process of assigning a practice’s business processes to an

external agency.


Pros of Outsourcing

Pros

Reduced costs

Time zones

Consistency in results

Ease of replacement

Increased revenue

Increased patient satisfaction


Cons of Outsourcing

Little direct control of the day-to-day

Costs can vary

Practice makes perfect

Risk to patient satisfaction

Possible hidden costs

Limitations


What Can my Practice Outsource?

Commonly Outsourced:

Environmental Services (Cleaning)/Laundry

Payroll

Billing

IT

Lab services


What Can my Practice Outsource?

Less Commonly Outsourced:

Incoming calls

Outbound calls

Management of eligibility and pre-authorization

Social media management/online marketing


Inbound/Incoming Calls &

Outbound Calls


Inbound/Incoming Calls & Outbound Calls

Options:

Inbound Services: Vendor takes calls for you

Outbound Services: Vendor makes calls for you


Inbound/Incoming Calls

How it works:

Automated vs. Live-Answer

Call Center vs. Virtual Receptionist

Similar to answering services of the “good ‘ole days”

Phones are routed to the service

Service delivers the messages to practice

Practice returns calls PRN



What can they do:

Answer

Route calls

Schedule appointments

Answer questions

Take refill and other requests

Triage*



PROS CONS

Cost savings Give up direct supervision/control

Free up staff Lack of practice knowledge

Less holding/telephone wait time Focus of agent may be divided

Never miss a phone call Hidden costs

Multi-lingual options

Metrics



When it’s time to outsource this function:

High Call Volume

Budget consideration

Small Practice

Patient Experience


Outbound Calls

How it works:

Service calls your specified list of patients for a specific task

Service can be automated or live-person

Service may be call, text or email

Some EHR/PM systems have this built-in or as an add-on for a nominal fee


Outbound Calls

What can they do:

Appointment reminders

Recalls

Confirmations

Answer questions

Take refill and other requests


Outbound Calls

PROS CONS

Cost savings Give up direct supervision/control

Free up staff Lack of practice knowledge

Less holding/telephone wait time Focus of agent may be divided

Multi-lingual options Hidden costs

Never miss a reminder call Ignoring automated calls

Metrics


Outbound Calls

When it’s time to outsource this function:

High out-call volume

Budget consideration

Small Practice


Inbound/Incoming Calls & Outbound Calls

Special Considerations:

Meeting your practice’s needs

Testing the waters

Inland vs. offshore

Remote access to scheduling functions

Auditing performance

Uptime and reliability


Eligibility and Pre-Authorizations



Why?

There are huge time and cost savings here. Unlike some of the other services I have mentioned, outsourcing eligibility and pre-authorizations is much more simple to outline obvious cost/benefit.



How it works:

EHR/PM

Automatic Eligibility

Enter Patient Data when appointment is scheduled

Automatically checked 72 hours and then 24 hours

Outsourced Company

Provide list of patients

Verifying patient coverageContacting patients directly

Updating billing system with details



What they can do

Ensure all requirements for eligibility and pre-authorization are efficiently met

Complete all follow-ups and promptly send results back to your practice



PROS CONS

Dedicated Team Direct control

Stays up-to-date on requirements

Huge time and money saver

Large ROI

Faster payer responses

Reduces Claims Rejections

Avoid collections and billing costs

Accurate collections at point of care



Eligibility by the numbers

It’s a SAVINGS




It’s a SAVINGS

Cost of manual eligibility verification: $3.70 x1,250 =$4,625




It’s a SAVINGS


Cost of electronic eligibility verification: $0.74 x1,250 =$925




It’s a SAVINGS


Cost of electronic eligibility verification: $0.74 x1,250 =$925

Average annual savings from electronic eligibility verification: $3,700 (Based on annual average of 1,250 verifications for a single physician.)



Faster and more accurate payer responses

ID PCP and other medical coverage

Reduces claim rejections

Avoid collection and billing costs r/to verification errors

Enable accurate collection at POC

Staff time and energy devoted to revenue-enhancing



Pre-authorization by the numbers

Cost of manual prior authorizations $10.78 x 200 = $2,156





Cost of electronic prior authorizations $2.07 x 200 = $414





Cost of electronic prior authorizations $2.07 x 200 = $414

Average annual savings per physician for automating prior authorization: $1,742 (Based on average of 200 prior authorizations)



Faster payer response

Minimize time and resources

Free staff for revenue-enhancing functions

Decrease transaction costs over 80%



Specialty Considerations:

High volume

High dollar services

Services that require pre-authorization (i.e., surgery)


Social Media Management/Marketing



Why?

Marketing is key to growing your practice and social media is the most targeted and cost-effective way to get there. Just like with insurance and reimbursement, social media and marketing rules and best practices change…often.



How it works?

1. Questionnaire

2. Branding meeting and research

3. 12-month strategy

4. Weekly posts

5. Monthly Metrics



What they can do?

Increase brand recognition

Bring new patients in the door

Build a community around your practice

Highly targeted advertising and data

BIG advantage over the competition



False Rumor:

Our practice can’t do social media marketing and cannot outsource this function because of HIPAA.



PROS CONS

Strategic Direct supervision/control

Expertise Access to content

Up-to-date on latest algorithms Hiring can be time consuming

Professional, relevant content/graphics

Custom Applications

Metrics/Data

Around-the-clock monitoring



Special Considerations

Team effort

Staff social media policy

Start small

Research to find real expertise


You can’t do everything yourself and expect to grow.


When to Outsource

2 Key Questions:

1. Are the cost advantages greater than the cost incurred to outsource?

2. Is the risk to the practice due to outsourcing acceptable?


When to Outsource

Are the cost advantages greater than the cost incurred to outsource?

Cheaper labor

Expertise

Lower fixed cost


When to Outsource

Is the risk to the practice due to outsourcing acceptable?

Key business functions

Protecting health information

Reliability


How to choose an outsourced vendor



1. Clearly define what you want to achieve




2. Check experience




2. Check experience

3. Ask for references and/or work samples




2. Check experience


4. Ensure good communication/client management practices




2. Check experience



5. Ascertain intellectual property ownership




2. Check experience




6. Check IT infrastructure (data security)




2. Check experience




6. Check IT infrastructure (data security)

7. Select specialists, start small, reduce risks


Engaging a Vendor

General details:

Cost and scope of work

Monitoring/Reporting

Disengagement Plan


Additional Considerations

Outsourcing that only solves PART of the problem

That pesky control thing

The practice is more skilled than the vendor

The practice can do it cheaper than the vendor

The practice doesn’t continue to monitor vendor


The most successful practices:

Use outsourcing to compliment and supplement their staff’s expertise.






4 Answer Questions


Discover Kareo’s Role

Cloud-based

Insurance & Patient Billing

Scheduling & Practice Management

Electronic Health Records

Medical Billing Services

Education, Training, & Support

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25,000 Providers Nationwide


Kareo Virtual Office

• Kareo PM

• Kareo Billing Services

• Kareo Virtual Office

• Inbound Calls (scheduling, refills)

• Outbound calls (recalls, reminders)

• Eligibility/pre-authorization

• Document Management


Kareo Marketplace

• Kareo PM

• Kareo Billing Services

• Kareo Virtual Office

• Kareo Partners

• Online appt. scheduling

• Text reminders

• Recalls

• Reputation Management

• Specialty EHRs


Discover Kareo’s Role






4 Answer Questions

4 outsourcing solutions that could make your practice better

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