Direct care is exactly what it sounds like – medical care directed straight at the patient. No insurance middle man, no red tape and certainly no opportunity for things to get lost in translation.
Category Archives: How To
June 20, 2013
June 14, 2013
How many patients should a concierge doctor have?
First off, consider yourself blessed if you’re part of the growing community of practicing doctors who left the insurance nightmares behind. You’re going to have a lot on your plate now, even at less than maximum patient capacity. You’ve got to get your head around new billing processes, new responsibilities (like answering the phone and scheduling your own appointments) and most likely, a new office. However, you’ll want to prepare yourself for some serious patient expansion around the 18-month mark.
June 13, 2013
How much does it cost to run a concierge medical practice?
Running a concierge medical practice costs a lot less than you’d expect. While a variety of factors (location, space size, clientele, etc.) might push your overhead up or down, we’ve got our head around some numbers that will provide a great benchmark for transitioning concierge medical doctors.
June 12, 2013
How many staff do I need for a concierge medical practice?
Congratulations if you’ve popped the cork on your “cash-only” concierge medicine practice! From the outset, YOU are the captain of your practice, and the sole reason that it even exists. But we’ve got another question to ask before we get to staff…
June 7, 2013
What equipment do I need to purchase to start a concierge medical practice?
Let’s be frank. You’ve likely got a plethora of machines and equipment strewn about your current practice. The machines might vary if you’re a specialist, but if you’re a family doctor you’ve obviously got thermometers, Sphygmanometer, Electrocardiogram, etc. But what do actually NEED to practice concierge medicine? In actuality, you can start with little more than a stethoscope and your phone.
April 9, 2013
Tweet Like A Professional M.D.
Twitter for Dummies offers Guidelines To Live By on their Twitter Cheat Sheet. Have a look at them below, they’re extremely helpful for a new Twitter user. However, the caveats in italics will help practicing doctors stay professional.
April 9, 2013
Use Facebook Chat Effectively
Facebook Chat is one of a multitude of online chat platforms. It allows quick instantaneous communication with a limitless number of people. More than you’ll likely ever want to talk to at once. Besides being embedded within one of the most highly trafficked websites on the planet, it has a key advantage: a certain degree of privacy.
As a doctor, you’ll of course want to check with state regulation to make sure Facebook Chat is compliant with standards. Here at AtlasMD, based in Kansas, we are able to Facebook chat with patients who sign a confidentiality agreement. A key advantage to this forum is that the messages are only able to be accessed by a sole user, and can be deleted at will.
First, make sure you are familiar with what Facebook Chat is and how to use it. Check out Facebook Chat Basics. The How To Use Facebook Chat section is all you need to get going. It’s easy to use. If you want, get a friend or family member to “chat” with you to try it out.
April 9, 2013
Make Friends With Social Media, Carefully
Concierge medicine opens up new opportunities to enhance patient-doctor relationships through social media. But doctors need to know how to use the tools to make the most of them. And they need to know how to do so responsibly. This first post will go over the basics. Keep this link handy, though, since links to more specific best practices will be added below over time.
Please be advised, do not start connecting with patients right away. At least not yet. First things first, get your head around social media. Then determine how you can use these tools to positively reinforce your relationship with the Web at large, as well as colleagues and patients.
If you’re already feeling comfortable with using Facebook and Twitter as a personal user, check out the growing list of topics covering Social Media Best Practices For Medical Professionals. Otherwise keep going for a breakdown of what Facebook and Twitter are useful for.