Toy in the Cracker Jacks box for numbers hounds
Even though Los Angeles is roasting, I’m certain that I feel an extra chill in the morning and evening air. Maybe it’s just that I know fall is around the corner, but I feel what I know: Summer is coming to a close.
Are you forgetting something? Has someone in your practice filled out the survey to rank the Radiology 100: The 100 Largest Private Radiology Practices? This year, Radiology Business Journal and CliftonLarsonAllen will produce our seventh annual ranking and report on the nation’s largest private practices, and we couldn’t do it without your help.
The truth is that only about half of the practices self report their data. Data for the remaining practices are solicited via telephone and email, and when that fails, we resort to Web sites. The data for those reluctant practices is overstated because we rank by the number of FTE radiologists, and Web sites provide at best a body count rather than an accurate accounting.
This year, we are offering those practices that do self-report a reward—and for those who don’t, an incentive—in the form of an Excel spreadsheet containing all of the published data points, including the numbers of radiologists, employees, imaging centers, hospital contracts, and annual procedures. Think of it as the toy in the Cracker Jack box for numbers hounds.
We do not share any of the financial date that you entrust to us. Those of you who participate every year know that it is not necessary to provide this data in order to appear on the list. The financial data are used to make observations about various practice-size cohorts, so those of you who do contribute these numbers enrich the report we produce about the business of the specialty.
No more unfair advantage for non-self–reporting practices this year: For practices for which we use data drawn from a Web site, we will reduce their number of radiologists listed by 5 percent to get closer to their real number of FTEs.
If you haven’t filled out the survey yet, please go to this link and do that now: The final deadline for self-reporting is September 15. Help us to produce the most complete, accurate and equitable ranking yet.
Have a great Labor Day weekend!
Vice President, Executive Editor, Radiology Business
Cheryl began her career in journalism when Wite-Out was a relatively new technology. During the past 16 years, she has covered radiology and followed developments in healthcare policy. She holds a BA in History from the University of Delaware and likes nothing better than a good story, well told.