Effective RCM Strategies for Small Medical Practices

Are you keeping close tabs on your practice’s revenue cycle management? If not, you could find yourself struggling with claim denials and far too many outstanding balances. RCM can cause plenty of administrative headaches, especially if you’re running a small practice. Small practices typically struggle to manage the RCM process because it’s tedious, and they’d rather spend that time on patient care.

Below, learn everything you need to know about RCM for small practices to help your business achieve financial success.

What Is Revenue Cycle Management (RCM)?

Revenue cycle management, or RCM for short, is an administrative process health providers use to ensure payment collection for services rendered. RCM is also required to remain compliant with certain regulatory requirements. For example, healthcare regulations may require a practice to go through the entire process to get paid by Medicare or Medicaid.

The RCM process begins with gathering information about the patient and completing insurance verification before the patient sees a doctor. The insurance company then decides whether to cover the service. If insurance policies deny the service or the patient has no insurance coverage, the patient will have to pay out of pocket.

Next comes charge capture, during which healthcare providers use a coding system to record all services provided to patients. After that, they’ll start submitting claims for payment. If all goes well, the provider gets paid for the service. If something is amiss, though, insurance could deny claims submitted, resulting in lost revenue.

Lastly, there is the post-payments stage. In this stage, practices record and reconcile payments from patients and insurance companies.

Challenges in Revenue Cycle Management for Small Practices

RCM for small practices can be incredibly challenging. Due to limited resources and time, billing accuracy may suffer, resulting in unpaid claims and further administrative burdens. Errors are incredibly common from small teams that don’t have the specialized expertise needed to put together claims. This lack of knowledge can do a real number on your practice’s financial health.

Tracking claims while keeping up with regulatory changes only adds to the pile of administrative tasks your employees must do. Make a mistake somewhere in the billing process, and you could end up with costly denied claims for your medical practice.

Effective RCM Strategies for Small Practices

If you’re struggling with revenue cycle management for small practices, here’s how you can improve efficiency and boost your office’s financial stability.

Streamlining Billing and Payment Processes

Coding errors are one of the biggest downfalls of the RCM process. When employees have to type in codes by hand, it’s all too easy to make mistakes. Don’t blame your employees, though; they’re only human, after all.

One of the best ways to reduce manual errors is to integrate billing software into your practice. With this advanced technology, you won’t have to correct errors because you won’t be making them in the first place.

Staff Training and Development

In addition to knowing how to reduce errors, investing in staff training can greatly help you refine your billing practices, cut down on claim denials, and boost cash flow. Train your staff on the basics of medical billing services, as well as any regulations that could affect patient payments.

If you don’t have the time or operational efficiency to guide staff through revenue cycle training, consider outsourcing medical billing. Outsourcing RCM services isn’t free, but it’ll do wonders to ease your administrative burdens. With the help of the right RCM provider, independent practices can focus on patient care rather than worrying about their financial performance.

Regular Financial Audits

If you’re craving an efficient RCM process, it helps to identify areas that are negatively impacting your medical billing process and financial health. For example, small practices may not have enough staff to manage cash flow properly and the revenue cycle. Their attention is divided between patient satisfaction and RCM.

One solution is to hire more staff, but if you can’t do that, there’s no shame in working with an RCM provider. The cost savings for RCM for small practices will pay for the service in no time.

Improving Patient Engagement

Focusing on patient engagement is just as important as keeping tabs on medical billing for small practices. Before providing patient care, ensure that patients understand their financial responsibilities. Consider offering patient financing to ensure timely payments.

Leveraging Technology To Enhance RCM

If you haven’t yet put the latest tech to work in your medical practice, you’ll be amazed at the difference it makes in your revenue cycle management process. Check out these ideas for using advanced technology:

• Combine your billing system with electronic health records to achieve seamless data flow. By doing this, employees won’t have to enter data manually, greatly lowering the chance of mistakes.
• Purchase practice management software that comes with tools like patient scheduling and automated reminders for appointments.
• Implement an online payment portal for faster payments. This allows patients to pay you from their computer or phone instead of having to come into your office or send a check.
• Use analytic tools to track your practice’s performance and identify areas for improvement. For example, you may be spending too much time fixing errors.

Achieving Balance Between Optimized Collections and Outstanding Patient Care | Weave

Key Metrics To Measure RCM Performance

What metrics should small practices track to measure RCM performance? These are the key performance indicators to keep your eye on:

• Days in accounts receivable (DAR): This metric tells you how many days you’ve waited for insurance to pay the claim.
• Claim denial rates: This is the number of claims that insurance has denied.
• Net collection rates: Net collection rates tell you the percentage of payments collected against what is still owed.

Enhance Your RCM With Weave

Looking for the perfect partner to help you with RCM for small practices? Give Weave a try! Our software comes with all the tools you’ll ever need to keep your practice running smoothly, including integrated billing and payments, appointment reminders, and patient communication tools. With Weave by your side, you’ll never have to miss payment for your services again.

To take Weave for a test drive, book your demo today.