A mechanism to increase your clinic's revenue.
- Find affordable and valuable healthcare solutions for your patients.
- Borrow from big tech: pass a marginal cost onto your patients frequently.
- Price it in, not out — it works better for you and your patient.
- Look to healthcare solutions as business growth factors, not just examinations.
Healthcare Is the Largest Employer in the United States
Medicine and its activities are the single largest employer in the United States, with just over 34 million employed in the Education and Health Services industry — nearly double that of second-place Retail. Total healthcare expenses in 2019 rang in at $3.65 trillion. Private practices contribute substantially to total healthcare cash flow, while out-of-pocket expenses have grown to nearly $406 billion — with most of that lending to private practice.
Beware of the Expensive Hardware Healthcare Model
It's tempting to have a cool new toy pitched as a revenue driver for the business. But what about that $15,000 table-top unit with a yearly software license? Even if it is reimbursable, how many tests are required to get your money back? If you onboarded a new software solution every time it was pitched to you, your cost per patient would spiral out of control. The key is to focus on impactful and affordable systems that add genuine value to your practice.
Borrow Big Tech's Revenue Model: Small and Frequent
The gig economy is showing us the power of the small but necessary. A little revenue here, a couple of dollars there, sprinkle in some add-ons for pennies on the dollar, and you can grow your business by double percentage points every year. Let's say you buy into a technology platform at $1,200 per year as part of your standard exam. Passing just $0.99 onto your patients means you need to use it 1,213 times a year to recoup your investment — which is feasible with 5 patients per day over 260 business days.
Price It In, Win Them Back for a Follow-Up
A better solution is to price your onboarded technology into the visits. A marginal cost can still be passed on to the patient, but in a way that maximizes value for both parties. Say you're seeing a patient for dysautonomia and you're three visits deep while continually monitoring progress. There needs to be a reason for that 4th or 5th visit — and it also can't be meaningless for the patient.
For example, a single 15-minute follow-up exam for $50 is both a bargain for the patient and an excellent revenue mechanism. That's 24 such exams per year to recoup your platform cost, compared to 1,213 at $0.99 each.
A Real Example with Reflex Pro
Based on an estimated $500 average visit cost with 2 Reflex-oriented follow-ups per week over 40 working weeks, the estimated additional income is $40,000 per year — a 33× return on the cost of Reflex Pro.
One Size Doesn't Fit All
These estimations may or may not make sense for your clinic's business model. Maybe you're always booked, so squeezing in a few value-added follow-ups doesn't make practical sense. But consider last year, where COVID-19 rattled single-member clinics with patient visits averaging roughly 60% of expected. Technology opens avenues to keep client flow moving while still managing distancing. Reflex Telehealth, for example, allows autonomic exams remotely — the same value-added care while still being an invoiceable event.