Physician's Practice - November 2008 - (Page 43)

FINANCE Rather, it’s the way the insurance payments have played out. Christopher Apostol, a partner with Evans Medical Group in Evans, Ga., echoes the general consensus in primarycare circles: “My main frustration is that the only way we can increase our revenue is by seeing patients, because we’re not procedure-based.” Blair concurs, saying, “It’s been pretty well documented that cognitive specialties don’t fare as well as procedural specialties,” he says, and offers a quick history lesson. “The original idea was that CT scanners and MRIs are expensive equipment, so you’ve got to factor in those costs for reimbursement. Now the more ‘things’ you do, the more you get paid; the less ‘things’ you do, the less you get paid.” Rather paradoxical in light of what medicine is all about; “Or what people would like,” says Blair. ANATOMY OF A PAYCHECK This year, we asked physicians a bit more about what makes up their take-home pay beyond straight salary. Nearly half of respondents (47.24 percent) receive no bonus at all. Of those that do receive bonuses, nearly two-thirds (64.4 percent) report that it ranges between 1 percent and 10 percent of their total salaries. The numbers shrink rapidly from there: 14.85 percent of the total respondents claim 11 percent to 25 percent of income as bonus money, 3.82 percent receive 26 percent to 50 percent in bonus form, and a lucky three people claim that more than 50 percent of their pay packets are stuffed with bonuses (unless said bonus is completely contingent on productivity, as in sales, which would heap quite a stress load on those “lucky” three). MY MOM, THE DOCTOR WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING BEST DESCRIBES NET INCOME FROM YOUR PRACTICE? EXCELLENT APPROPRIATE DISAPPOINTING Specialty Family Practice Internal Medicine Pediatrics Average 2006 10.2% 8.6% 12.1% 10.3% 2007 9.4% 4.4% 13.4% 9.07% 2008 9.48% 7.5% 7.94% 8.31% 2006 2007 2008 2006 49.3% 61.2% 51.7% 2007 2008 39.6% 31.3% 48.28% 30.2% 28.3% 36.25% 36.2% 41.5% 49.21% 35.33% 33.7% 44.58% 59.3% 42.24% 67.3% 56.25% 45.1% 42.86% 54.07% 57.23% 47.12% WHAT IS YOUR OVERHEAD AS A PERCENTAGE OF NET MEDICAL REVENUE? 2008 OVERHEAD Family Practice 0-10% 11-20% 21-30% 31-40% 41-50% 51-60% 61-70% 71-80% 81-90% 91-100% 1.85% 1.85% 5.56% 5.56% 18.52% 35.19% 20.37% 7.41% 1.85% 1.85% Internal Medicine 2.17% 8.7% 6.52% 10.87% 23.91% 19.57% 13.04% 8.7% 2.17% 4.35% Pediatrics 0% 0% 3.23% 22.58% 22.58% 25.81% 16.13% 9.68% 0% 0% According to the U.S. Health and Human Services report, “Physicians Supply and Demand: Projections to 2020,” nearly half of all physicians completing their training through programs of graduate medical education each year are women. That’s signiﬁcant, because most women approach their careers differently than men. The large portion of new female doctors is changing not only primary care, but the business of medicine in general. Women are more likely to choose non-surgical specialties than men are because a hospitalist or emergency physician has a set schedule and no call — both necessary perks for managing the family, which remains largely in the hands of women, despite signiﬁcant female entry into the nation’s work force over the past generation or two. Female physicians also are much more likely to job-share or work part-time. We found ourselves curious about how the gender issue plays out in our own survey, so this year, we asked respondents to indicate their genders. Our results show about a 60/40 split between males and females, respectively. Interestingly, the “Did Not Respond” crowd swelled for the 46- to 55-year-old set. But consider that this age group’s college time was smack in the middle of the “I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar” years, so it’s possible their “nunya beeswax” attitude is a vestige left over from those gender equality trail-blazing years. NOVEMBER 2008 | PHYSICIANS PRACTICE | WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM 43 http://WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Physician's Practice - November 2008

Physician's Practice - November 2008 Contents Death of Solo Practice Just a Myth Letters HSAy What? Noteworthy Finding Lost Revenue: The Search for Billing and Coding Gold Getting More: Our Annual Physician Compensation Survey ’Tis the Season to be Neutral Ask the Experts Evaluating Paperless Labs HR in a Box? The Guide Coding Third-Party Audits on the Rise Branding the Cash-Only Practice Intra-Office Tug-of-Wars Stickin‘ Up For Yourself Classifieds Advertiser Index

Physician's Practice - November 2008

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