Author: webadmin

With decades of multiple PT practice ownership experience and 10+ years of consulting for Physical Therapy, Chiropractic, Speech Therapy, and Occupational Therapy practices — including buying and selling, marketing, billing, and more — Kevin is the person to speak with when you want to simplicity amidst the chaos, to create more revenue, manage your staff more effectively, and build your brand.

How to Improve Patient Care

Providing excellent patient care goes beyond just treating an illness; it involves creating a compassionate, efficient, and supportive environment that addresses a person’s physical and emotional needs. Today, we bring key strategies to help healthcare professionals and facilities elevate their standards of care.

One of the most overlooked ways to improve patient care is through streamlined operations. When practices—whether physical therapy, dentistry, chiropractic, or other healthcare specialties—are weighed down by billing errors, insurance frustrations, and delayed payments, the patient experience suffers too. By removing these obstacles and ensuring financial workflows run smoothly, providers gain more time to focus on what truly matters: quality care and stronger patient relationships.

The patient-centered care (PCC) framework is a proven way to improve patient care and raise healthcare standards. It’s grounded in the clinical efficacy of a collaborative partnership between patients and healthcare providers—one in which people take a more active role in their own care decisions.

PCC moves beyond the traditional disease-focused model to place a greater emphasis on patients’ unique needs, preferences and values. It also prioritizes safety, which, according to one member of the Sermo community, “is the foundation of good patient care. Achieving safety in patient care is part of achieving quality patient care.”

Here’s how it improves patient care standards, plus 13 actionable ways healthcare organizations and doctors can apply PCC in practice.

Why is patient-centric care so important?

The U.S. healthcare system aims to deliver evidence-based, high-quality and cost-effective care that optimizes patient outcomes. To achieve this, it has increasingly relied on evidence-based medicine (EBM)—or evidence-based practice (EBP)—and PCC conjunctively.

While EBM’s standardized protocols can conflict with the individualization PCC requires, medical centers that effectively integrate both approaches support patients more holistically, improving outcomes and reducing the risk of error.

More comprehensive support

A common misconception is that PCC simply means granting all patient requests. But it involves:

• Identifying and responding to patients’ perspectives and emotional needs
• Working together to establish a mutual understanding of the condition, its treatment, and the roles of both physician and patient

These two points reflect PCC’s core principle: Healing depends not only on accurate diagnoses, but also on understanding and treating each patient as a whole person.

Stronger patient satisfaction

Individualized care improves patient satisfaction in several ways. Research shows that patients who receive PCC are more than four times likelier to report improved physical health, and over five times likelier to report improved mental health. PCC also enhances patients’ sense of treatment necessity more than sixfold.

Patient satisfaction also reduces costs, prevents discharge/readmission cycles and strengthens patient-clinician communication.

Lower the risk of error

When physicians combine components of PCC, like patient education, standardized policies and co-creation of care plans, they empower both themselves and their patients to understand situations and spot problems before they snowball. This error reduction improves patient outcomes and quickens care processes.

The 4Cs of quality patient care

The four core primary care functions—often called the four pillars, tenets or the 4Cs—were first developed in the 1990s to improve service quality. Since then, they’ve informed PCC’s frameworks and helped physicians measure and advance their quality of care.

The 4Cs are first contact, comprehensiveness, coordination and continuity:

Contact: Start of personalized patient care

“Contact,” or “first contact,” refers to the initial point that patients enter the healthcare system through a primary care provider. Its function is to help patients seek care for new health concerns and give them timely, individualized treatment when needed.

Comprehensiveness: Meeting all patient needs

“Comprehensiveness” refers to the scope of services available to address a wide range of patient needs, including preventive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative services. Its function is to ensure that providers can manage most common conditions and collaborate with necessary specialists.

Coordination: Across the care system

“Coordination” refers to how primary care integrates services within and beyond the practice setting. It encourages key stakeholders to communicate effectively, giving patients a seamless transition across various levels and types of care.

Continuity: Building trust to improve patient care

“Continuity” refers to the ongoing, long-term relationship between patients and their primary care providers. Through routine interactions across time, providers should build a holistic understanding of patients’ health histories, preferences and needs—a process that helps improve patient care over time through continuity and trust.

How to improve patient care: 13 strategies

While several PCC frameworks exist, very few offer clear, actionable guidance for translating principles into everyday clinical practice.

To help address this problem, researchers from the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine and Department of Economics developed a conceptual framework guided by the Donabedian model: structure, process and outcome.

Here are 13 actionable strategies for improving patient care by implementing PCC, each drawn from the framework above—seven at the structural level, four at the process level, and two at the outcome level.

Structure

Strategies under “structure” relate to system‐ and organizational‐level stakeholders—such as senior leadership and policymakers—who establish the foundational supports necessary for patient‐centered care.

1. Incorporate a patient-centric care culture

Leaders should implement an organization-wide, unified vision focused on improving patient care through respect for diverse patient values and lived experiences. This can include standardizing PCC terminology, recognizing the role of diversity in holistic care and ensuring that shared decision‐making guides policy decisions.

2. Co-design training programs

Collaborate on training program development and implementation to standardize PCC training organization-wide. These programs should:

• Integrate both patient and provider perspectives
• Extend beyond formal curricula to include mentorship and ongoing leadership development
• Involve all stakeholders—including administrative staff and volunteers—to ensure a sustained cultural shift toward PCC in day-to-day practice

3. Collaborate on health promotion and prevention

Policymakers, leaders and local organizations should co-design health promotion and prevention efforts to match the lived experiences of their patient populations. The more perspectives available, the more information goes into these efforts, leading to comprehensive plans.

4. Commit your workforce to patient-centric care

Provide clinicians with the resources and incentives they need to practice person-centered care. This can involve:

• Adopting payment models that favor relationship‐building
• Internally celebrating small wins related to PCC
• Creating “communities of care,” which foster teamwork among key stakeholders to collectively meet patients’ needs

5. Provide an accommodating environment

A healthcare environment’s physical design—for example, natural lighting and noise control—influences both patient safety and perceived experiences. Beyond creating an environment that prioritizes safety, partner with patients to create settings that are welcoming, private and accommodating of individual needs.

6. Support the relevant technological infrastructure

Implement the necessary infrastructure for electronic health records and patient portals that connect providers throughout the care continuum. Systems should be both seamless and user-friendly. And all relevant professionals should receive training and ongoing technical support to make sure they (and their patients) can securely access and use these systems.

7. Measure patient-centric care

With input from patients, co‐design frameworks and meaningful metrics for measuring, monitoring and evaluating PCC—accounting for both complaints and compliments. Use these frameworks to identify gaps and drive improvement.

Process

The strategies under “process” involve front‐line and service‐delivery stakeholders.

8. Cultivate communication

There are two sides to the communications coin: listening and responding. As you listen to patients, aim to take an active role. Ask questions out of genuine concern, respond empathetically and consider your nonverbal behaviors. As you respond and share information with patients, work to create a shared understanding and tell patients all relevant details.

One Sermo community member shared valuable insight about the importance of patient care about advances in medical technology. They wrote, “The physician plays a fundamental role at the intersection between medicine and technology, acting as the bridge between technological innovations and [PCC].”

“To maximize the benefits of these technologies, it is essential that we as health professionals act as guides and advocates, ensuring that patient-centered care remains the priority.”

9. Provide compassionate care

Respectful and compassionate care means being responsive to individual patient needs. Recognize the patient as an expert on their own health, and take the time necessary to understand the patient’s psychosocial context. In all cases, aim to build a partnership with patients—one built on empathy and transparency.

10. Engage patients in care management

Co-designing care plans gives patients an active role in managing their condition. This involves promoting health literacy, facilitating shared decision-making and actively gathering patient feedback, all of which can lead to better outcomes.

11. Ensure integrated care

Use unified digital platforms to securely and seamlessly communicate information to all key stakeholders across the continuum, and actively address any communications process fragmentations. For maximum transparency and ease of access, give patients a private and direct line to their digital records.

12. Measure access to care

Evaluate your system’s capacity to promptly and effectively deliver PCC. This involves systematically measuring the time it takes for patients to receive care, the impact of financial barriers and physician availability.

13. Consider patient self-reporting

Patient‐reported outcomes measures (PROMs), patient‐reported experience measures (PREMs) and patient‐reported adverse outcomes (PRAOs) all capture critical patient‐generated information. Together, they offer direct insight into key focus areas like patients’ daily functioning and care experiences.

Providers who integrate patient input into clinical practice improve outcomes and deliver higher-quality care. Use these metrics to inform future PCC initiatives.

Join a global network of physicians to improve care together

Other physicians’ input can give you tips and insights you wouldn’t find otherwise. See what other professionals have to say by joining the exclusive Sermo community of verified physicians.

Sermo is home to a community of 1.5 million physicians and other HCPs who collaborate with their peer groups, share insights and learn together. Plus, Sermo offers doctors the opportunity to earn a healthy side income through paid surveys that help improve healthcare.

At PerformDDS, billing isn’t just another service—it’s our specialty. Our experienced team supports PTs, dentists, chiropractors, and other providers with transparent, efficient billing solutions that free your staff from administrative burdens. But that is just one of our many services! Ready to transform your patient care and your practice’s bottom line? Schedule your free consultation with Kevin Rausch today, and let us answer your questions and build a customized solution for your practice. Book now, and discover how the right billing partner can make all the difference.

👉 Follow us on Instagram for more insights: @performdds

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Reference: [https://www.sermo.com/resources/13-solutions-for-improving-patient-care-and-outcomes-in-2025/]

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Opening a medical practice involves significant costs beyond medical knowledge. Sufficient initial capital is also vital for sustainability. Understanding these financial aspects is key to planning and securing funding for your practice. Read on to explore the main costs of starting a medical practice.

At Perform Practice Solutions we can help guide you in dozens of ways. We have seen all your challenges before!

Perform Healthcare Billing Solutions is just one example of ways we can save you money — and your precious time. We created Perform Healthcare Billing Solutions because we saw so many of our practice clients getting burned by either their in-house biller or worse: their medical billing agency. You work so hard treating patients and running your practice, count on us to get you paid and fast. Our team of expert healthcare billing experts works around the clock to maximize your claims, get solid info from your front desk, and bill daily! We average a 3-week bill to paid time! Let us show you just how fast you can get paid — and how we can save you your hard-earned money. This is just one of our many supportive services. Book with us and let’s talk!

Starting a medical practice from scratch can be exciting, but to invest in a practice that has healthy cash flow and can scale and grow, you need to identify and plan for your medical practice start-up costs – so you can avoid as many surprises as possible.

There are many costs to consider when starting your own medical practice, and it might seem overwhelming at first, trying to plan for every contingency. Even if you know what costs you will be facing, it can be difficult to know how much all the costs will really be once you start implementing your business plan.

Medical Director’s new guide,  ‘Calculating the cost of starting your medical practice’ offers a range of practical tips to help give you a clearer picture of what common costs you need to factor into your financial plan when starting out.

Through conversations with leading healthcare and financial experts, the guide offers tested and instantly practical advice about how to:

• Budget for expenses when starting out
• Cut costs with cloud software
• Calculate your set-up costs
• Manage your finances
• Finance your new practice.

Common medical practice start-up costs

You’ll get the full picture in the guide, but here’s a snapshot of some of the costs you need to consider if you’re thinking about starting a medical practice:

1. Business plan development
2. Preliminary accounting and legal advice to help you set up your new business entity
3. Insurances and licenses, including medical malpractice insurance, workers compensation insurance and property insurance.
4. Tenancy/lease bond agreements and property advice
5. Design and fitout
6. Telephone/internet installation
7. Statutory requirements and legal advice
8. Power connection
9. IT infrastructure plan
10. EFTPOS infrastructure
11. Medical equipment/materials/machinery, office space, basic office equipment, fixtures and fittings
12. Medical supplies and consumables
13. Software, including practice management system
14. Staff recruitment costs, training costs and wages
15. Market research, marketing material, signage, and a marketing plan.

Medical Director CEO Matthew Bardsley explains the importance of a sound financial plan for any successful medical practice. “A future-thinking, smart financial plan for any medical practice needs to start with the premise that every dollar spent in healthcare needs to contribute to the most efficient and effective way of providing ideal levels of patient care,” says Bardsley.

“Investing in the smartest, most innovative clinical practice management methods from the start will help empower your practice to scale and achieve a competitive advantage, while adapting to the needs of your patients now, and in the future.”

Factor in one-time expenses versus ongoing costs

As you develop your financial plan, be sure to identify which costs will be one-off, and which will recur monthly, quarterly and annually. This forecasting will help you manage and set up your budget realistically, and better organize your cash flow from the outset. It’s important to operate this way from the very beginning, so you don’t get caught out in the future.

No one-size-fits-all financial plan

Your exact start-up costs will depend on the type of medical practice you are starting, and the region in which you are operating. Costs in the different categories can also vary across industries and regions. For example, a specialist practice may need to invest in specialist clinical management software, while a larger general practice would need to invest in a larger IT package tailored to a bigger team of medical professionals and support staff.

Setting realistic expectations

It’s better to err on the side of caution, overestimating both the time and money it takes to start a medical practice. Some experts recommend adding at least 10% on top of your total costs to cover any miscellaneous expenses or unforeseen fees and charges.

Meanwhile, how long it takes for your private practice to open its doors to generate revenue can make a huge impact on your cash flow and costs. Don’t set unrealistic expectations and never rush. If you get the timing wrong, costs, fees, charges and even penalties can escalate quickly – and you can find yourself under pressure to comply without enough of an income stream. This could have a significant impact on not only your practice as a business, but your professional reputation in the industry.

Where to begin?

Do as much research as possible to get a clearer picture of your budget requirements and set expectations of your costs versus cash flow when starting out. There’s plenty of great advice at your fingertips.

• Industry associations, like the RACGP, offer valuable advice for practitioners ready to start their own medical practices.
• Industry solution providers, like Medical Director, can offer support and advice on IT infrastructure costs for software that will scale and grow with your medical practice.
• Government bodies often offer tax and other incentives to help you when you set up your own business.
• Financial institutions can offer tailored financial advice and guidance as to how best to structure any loans.
• Tax and legal advisors can help you make sure you’re complying with all relevant legislation.
• Our free guide can step you through all the calculations involved in starting a medical practice.

A final word from Bardsley. “Investing in the right efficient and scalable tools and systems when setting up your practice, will help pave the way for you to grow your reputation as a leader in your industry, while balancing your work and lifestyle in a way that suits you and your family best. I wish you the best of luck in setting up your new medical practice, and helping more Australians find better patient-centric care.”

Dreaming of focusing solely on patient care in your practice? Our expert consultants can help you implement strategies to improve efficiency, patient satisfaction, and revenue. Let us handle your medical and dental billing. Schedule your free consultation with Kevin Rausch to get all your questions answered. Book here today. Follow us on IG.

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Reference: [https://www.medicaldirector.com/news/starting-a-practice/new-guide-calculating-the-cost-of-starting-your-medical-practice/]

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Developing a business plan is a standard practice for any medical venture. This structured document serves as a framework for outlining objectives, analyzing the local healthcare market, and projecting financial considerations. To gain a more detailed understanding of the key components of creating a business plan relevant to medical practice, continue reading below.

Perform Practice Solutions is the secret weapon for successful practices all over the U.S. We simplify the most challenging and resource-draining aspects of managing a healthcare organization, including industry-specific marketing, billing, sales consulting, virtual staffing, front desk support — and more.  We can help you run your business with more efficiency and less stress. Let’s talk.

 

If you’re planning to start your own practice, or you’re taking over someone else’s medical business and want to run it effectively, it’s a good idea to spend some time working out the details and putting together a formalised plan first. You may also want to get professional advice on your business planning, and any other aspects of running your medical practice you’re not sure about. In the meantime here are a few business planning basics to get you started.

Why have a business plan for your medical practice?

While it can be tempting to just dive right in and start setting up your new medical practice, a business plan can help you get prepared and make sure you stay on the right track as your practice grows.

A solid business plan is the foundation of any successful medical practice. With a business plan you can identify potential issues upfront and devise a strategy to avoid them. You can also set realistic goals for your business to help you keep moving in the right direction. If you’re looking for funding at any stage, you’ll also need to have a business plan. Most medical practices will struggle to get a business loan without a solid business plan in place.

What to include in your medical practice business plan

Your business plan should include the following:

• A summary of your business, including the medical services you provide, your location, and the history of the business.
• Financial information including projected cash flow, outgoings like medical equipment, marketing and practice management software costs and projected turnover.
• Operational factors like trading hours, fees, staffing and potential suppliers
• Risk identification and management – details of how you will manage the biggest potential risks, e.g. malpractice insurance, other insurances, data security and your credentialing process.
• Marketing – how you will get new patients and retain the existing ones.

As well as all the information about your medical practice and strategy, it’s also important to set goals and targets for your new venture. These should be in your business plan so you can keep track of them and make sure you’re working towards them consistently.

Making sure you have a solid business plan

So how do you make sure your medical practice business plan is solid? It’s very easy to have your plan in your head, but if you don’t get it out, it’s going to be hard for anyone else, especially the other providers and support staff in your practice to implement it. So the first step is to put it down on paper, or in a word document.

Once you’ve got a detailed plan on paper, don’t just put it in a drawer and leave it. Business planning should be a regular task for you and your business partners. Once you have your business plan in place, make sure you review it at least once a year, preferably more and update it as your business priorities change.

Writing a business plan for your medical practice might seem like a time consuming task, but it’s well worth the effort. With a strong business plan, you can grow your practice, achieve your goals and avoid many of the pitfalls that can trip up practice owners who haven’t taken the time to plan ahead.

Focus on patient care, we’ll guide you through the business side. Our expert consultants can help you implement strategies to improve efficiency, patient satisfaction, and revenue. Let us handle your medical and dental billing, virtual staffing, and even marketing. We’ve seen your challenges many times and have 101 tools to support you. Schedule your free consultation with Kevin Rausch to get all your questions answered. Book here.

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Reference: [https://www.medicaldirector.com/news/starting-a-practice/how-to-write-a-business-plan-for-medical-practice/]

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