While independent private practice had served as the dominant model in radiology for years, that has changed post-2000 for myriad reasons. But despite corporate forces’ growing foray into the specialty, experts see opportunity for some operators to remain independent.
Kansas radiologist Kamran Ali, MD, and co-authors shared some of their best practices and critical success factors on Tuesday in JACR. They believe there is still a place for private practice, even amid the “current healthcare milieu” that’s forcing providers to reconsider their business setup.
“Evolving payment models, governmental regulations, resource needs, and report turnaround time demands are some factors that can threaten the independence of a practice,” Ali, with the Wichita Radiological Group, and co-authors explained May 3 in the American College of Radiology’s official journal. “Acknowledging these factors and having a game plan to mitigate threats and seize on opportunities will allow practices the option to remain independent.”
Ali and co-authors detailed some of private practices’ biggest strengths in this battle (regional recognition, management team control) and threats (internal politics). They distilled their advice for independent radiology providers into five take-home points:
1. Best fit: Practice leaders must accept that some physician group members may have skill sets suited for relative value unit production, while others are better served pursuing value-based metrics.
2. Keeping control: Radiologists just starting their careers have a desire to make decisions and hold power. Highlighting this aspect of private practice can be “an effective recruiting point,” the authors advised.
3. Form alliances: Independent practices can look to form partnerships with other likeminded groups to share certain back-office functions while retaining physician ownership. Potential services for consolidation might include IT infrastructure, billing and revenue management, and administering retirement plans.
4. Branch out: Private practice committees must cultivate a diversity of opinions in their working groups, avoiding getting trapped in “echo chambers with leadership.”
5. Be realistic: Leaders should allow their radiologists time for breaks, offer praise in each moment of success (rather than during performance reviews), and in general be more realistic when setting productivity demands. Such actions can help to decrease workplace stress and minimize physician burnout.
Read much more of Ali and colleagues’ advice in the Journal of the American College of Radiology here.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.