A robust quality improvement plan can help a gynecology practice enhance its business practices, boost revenues, and promote both patient and provider satisfaction. In today's patient-centric healthcare market, these qualities can make or break your business.
A study published in BMC Family Practice identified time constraints, cost of activities, problems with information management, unmotivated staff and lack of financial incentives as the most significant barriers to quality improvement (QI) activities. The study also found that the greatest benefits of a QI program were greater efficiency, improved patient and staff retention, and higher rates of satisfaction among both clinicians and staff members.
Since 2015, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has increasingly moved toward a value-based payment system. Under this system, quality of care is rewarded, rather than quantity of care. Among other things, unnecessary tests and procedures will cost a practice money, since one of the goals of the program is to reduce costs. It also means that low patient satisfaction scores will result in lower reimbursements, since these scores factor into reimbursements for quality.
QI Focuses on Patient Satisfaction and Retention
A Consumer Reports survey revealed that of the most common complaints about receiving medical care, patients' top concern was that doctors often fail to explain their results thoroughly. Surprisingly, time spent waiting in the physician's office for an appointment was ninth on the list. Survey participants were more concerned with issues such as billing disputes, not having enough time with their physician, difficulty in booking an appointment, privacy and the immediacy of test results.
Most of those complaints are related to inefficient communication on the part of the practice. A patient-centered practice will listen to these concerns and shift its strategy accordingly. If patients complain about the length of time it takes to book an appointment, for example, the practice might decide to leave more schedule slots open for urgent appointments. Also, if patients are being referred out for imaging tests such as ultrasound exams, offering these services in-house can reduce the time patients must wait to receive their results and encourage them to stay with the practice.
The survey also found that most satisfied patients find their gynecologists through word-of-mouth. If that's true, then it's natural to assume that a positive patient experience will improve retention rates and grow the referral base as well.
Continuous QI for Long-Term Success
The purpose of a quality improvement plan is to identify problems and implement strategies to remedy them. If your small or midsized gynecology practice is already seeing a dip in revenues or hearing many patient complaints, it might be time to look into your business processes to see where improvements can be made.
If your practice does not already have a substantive QI system in place, you can find numerous resources online. The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) provides templates for QI tools that can identify and nix inefficiencies. For example, a cycle time measurement exercise can help you determine how much time the average patient spends in each phase of her visit (e.g., in the waiting room, waiting for a doctor, meeting with the doctor or waiting for ultrasound procedures) and how long it takes her to check out when the visit is completed. AAFP also provides guidance on flow mapping and cause-and-effect diagramming, as well as other strategies to improve the business aspects of running a medical practice.
Maximizing the Value of Your Quality Improvement Plan
Most QI experts stress that having a continuous quality improvement plan does little if the plan and desired outcomes are not communicated effectively to employees. Because staff interactions, including those related to the billing process, factor into patient satisfaction scores, every team member in the practice should be engaged in QI activities.
If a specific quality improvement plan is not working, look for a system that better fits your needs. Continuous quality improvement is certainly not a one-size-fits-all undertaking, but looking for and trying methods that have already been established can set your practice on the right path.
