Medical Office Management
An Office Manager’s Career
• Billing, Claims and Accounts Receivable: Perform eligibility searches on all scheduled patients. Ensure that all dictation is complete and all encounters are charged and all payments, denials and adjustments are posted within pre-determined amount of time. Transmit electronic claims daily. Liaison with billing service if billing is outsourced. Credential care providers with all payers. Perform internal compliance audits. Run monthly reports for physician production, aged accounts receivable, net collection percentage and cost and collections per RVU.
• Ordering and Expense: Shop for, negotiate and recommend suppliers for medical consumables, office supplies, kitchen supplies, printed forms, business insurance, and malpractice insurance as well as services such as transcription, x-ray reads/over-reads, consultants, CPAs, lawyers, lawn and snow service, benefit administrators, answering service, water service, courier service, plant service, housekeeping, aquarium service, linen service, bio-hazardous waste removal, shredding service, off-site storage and caterers.
• Accounting: Pay bills, produce payroll, prepare compensation schedules for physicians, prepare and pay taxes, prepare budget and monthly variance reports, make deposits, reconcile bank statements, reconcile merchant accounts, prepare Profit & Loss statements, prepare refunds to payers and patients, and file lots and lots of paperwork.
• Strategic Planning: Prepare ROIs (Return on Investment) and pro formas for new physicians, new services, and new locations. Forecast potential effect of Medicare cuts, contracts in negotiation or over-dependence on one payer. Discuss 5-year plans for capital expenditures such as EMR, ancillary services, physician recruitment, and replacement equipment. Explore outsourcing office functions or having staff telecommute. Always look for technology that can make the practice more efficient or productive. In order to be a successful office
• Billing, Claims and Accounts Receivable: Perform eligibility searches on all scheduled patients. Ensure that all dictation is complete and all encounters are charged and all payments, denials and adjustments are posted within pre-determined amount of time. Transmit electronic claims daily. Liaison with billing service if billing is outsourced. Credential care providers with all payers. Perform internal compliance audits. Run monthly reports for physician production, aged accounts receivable, net collection percentage and cost and collections per RVU.
• Ordering and Expense: Shop for, negotiate and recommend suppliers for medical consumables, office supplies, kitchen supplies, printed forms, business insurance, and malpractice insurance as well as services such as transcription, x-ray reads/over-reads, consultants, CPAs, lawyers, lawn and snow service, benefit administrators, answering service, water service, courier service, plant service, housekeeping, aquarium service, linen service, bio-hazardous waste removal, shredding service, off-site storage and caterers.
• Accounting: Pay bills, produce payroll, prepare compensation schedules for physicians, prepare and pay taxes, prepare budget and monthly variance reports, make deposits, reconcile bank statements, reconcile merchant accounts, prepare Profit & Loss statements, prepare refunds to payers and patients, and file lots and lots of paperwork.
• Strategic Planning: Prepare ROIs (Return on Investment) and pro formas for new physicians, new services, and new locations. Forecast potential effect of Medicare cuts, contracts in negotiation or over-dependence on one payer. Discuss 5-year plans for capital expenditures such as EMR, ancillary services, physician recruitment, and replacement equipment. Explore outsourcing office functions or having staff telecommute. Always look for technology that can make the practice more efficient or productive. In order to be a successful office
References: “How are statistics used in the medical office management?”. ChaCha: Careers and Employment. 21 September 2010. 23 October 2012. http://www.chacha.com/question/how-are-statistics-used-in-medical-office-management. “How statistics are used in the medical field”. Answers.com. 23 October 2012. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_statistics_are_used_in_the_medical_field. “Summary Report for: 11-9111.00 - Medical and Health Services Managers”. O*Net Online. 23 October 2012. http://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/11-9111.00. “The 5 IT Skillsets Every Physician Practice Manager Needs to Succeed in 2009 and Beyond”. Manage My Practice: Information and Resources for the Medical Practice Manager. 23 March 2009. 23 October 2012. http://www.managemypractice.com/the-5-it-skillsets-every-physician-practice-manager-needs-to-succeed-in-2009-and-beyond/.