Successful Medical Practice: Winning Strategies For Doctors PDF
Preview Successful Medical Practice: Winning Strategies For Doctors
Successful Medical Practice - winning strategies tor doctors Dr.Aniruddha Malpani, MD Dr. Anjali Malpani, MD Successful Medical Practice: Winning Strategies for Doctors Successful Medical Practice: Winning Strategies for Doctors Dr. Aniruddha Malpani, MD Dr. Anjali Malpani, MD PTN Communications 3-3-62A, New Gokhale Nagar, Ramanthapur, Hyderabad - 500 013 Successful Medical Practice: Winning Strategies for Doctors Dr. Aniruddha Malpani, MD Dr. Anjali Malpani, MD Copyright: Dr. Aniruddha Malpani and Dr. Anjali Malpani Cartoons Copyright : Dr. Hemant Morparia Printed and Published by: V. Bhava Narayana on behalf of PTN Communications. 3-3-62A, New Gokhale Nagar, Ramanthapur, Hyderabad - 500 013 Tel Fax : 040-27030681, Mobile : 09849551183 e-mail:[email protected] First Published 2005 Printed at: Kala Jyothi Process Pvt. Ltd., 1-1-60/5, R.T.C. Cross Roads, Musheerabad, Hyderabad-500 020. A.P All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher and authors. Preface The education of the doctor which goes on after he has his degree is, after all, the most important part of his education. — John Shaw Billings (1838-1913) Running a successful private practice can be hard work. While medicine can be a very fulfilling profession, one out of every three doctors reports that medical practice leaves them dissatisfied because they have too little time for themselves or their families. Doctors suffer from depression four times as often as the general population ; and many doctors hate their jobs and dislike the majority of their patients. While most doctors acquire a high degree of medical expertise during their long years of professional training, unfortunately few learn anything at all about the nuts and bolts of running a practice. While some have a natural flair for entrepreneurship, many end up doing badly in real- life. In fact, many doctors are now quitting practice because of too much work, too much hassle, too much competition, too much despair, and too little reimbursement. They are increasingly feeling the pressure of having to see more patients, do more in less time, discount their fees sand face more competition. vi I Preface Like the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland, they find they are having to work harder just to remain in the same place. However, working harder (which is often the only solution most doctors can come up with to cope with this problem) is not the answer. After all, there are only 24 hours in a day ! What doctors need to learn is to work smarter, more efficiently, and more productively—and with less hassle and more satisfaction. The secret is to learn how to manage yourself. The problem is that certain skills—especially time management, knowledge management, and relationship management—are not taught in medical schools and most doctors have to learn them the hard way. Unfortunately , the majority never do, and they fail to live up to their potential, leading lives of quiet desperation. Like them, do you find that you are fed up of: • Long energy-exhausting hours and crushing workloads leaving little or no free time ? • Demanding dissatisfied patients ? • Inadequate payment for all your hard work ? The purpose of this book is to help you find a truly satisfying way of practising medicine which would: • Give you control of your time; • Allow you to do work which you felt was worthwhile, for patients that you enjoy seeing; and • Pay you well for your effort, so that you enjoy going to work every day. Many doctors feel they are very productive because they see patients all day long. However, there is a difference between being busy—which almost all physicians are these days—and being productive. This Preface I vii is the difference between inputs, which is how busy you are, and outputs, which is how productive you are - and the smart doctor will focus on improving his outputs. The better your practice fits with what you really want to do, then the more productive—and happier— you will be. A hundred years ago , when life was much simpler, the successful doctor was said to need three things; a top hat to give him authority, a paunch to give him dignity; and piles to give him an anxious expression. Today, a doctor who wants to run a successful private practice needs to be far more accomplished. He needs to be : • Clinician , who has polished medical skills, a reassuring bedside manner; and a high personal standard of medical ethics and professionalism; • Academician, who is a constant learner , and keeps up-to-date; • Manager , who understands the business aspects of running a profitable clinic, and is knowledgeable about marketing and networking; • Financial expert, who can manage his money and his investments; • CEO, who understands how to motivate staff and lead people; • Family provider, who is a good father and husband; and a • Self-care-taker, who know how to look after himself and fulfill his personal needs . While this may seem to be an intimidating list, there are many techniques which can help you become more successful. While many of these are based on simple common-sense, this book will allow you to think about viiil Preface them clearly, so you can apply them to your own life. The best practice management advice is disarmingly simply : "Patients are the practice. Everything else is just paperwork'." All doctors have a different definition of success. For someone, it may mean having lots of patients; for others it may mean a new car every year; others may find it in publishing high quality papers in academic journals, while others find happiness in teaching students. There are as many ways of having a successful private practice as there are doctors, because everyone's definition of success is very personal and private. You need to create your own path, because success is internal and is achieved when you reach your own goals. We are privileged to be doctors - let's make sure we enjoy doing what we do, so we can all be happy and successful in our own lives ! — Dr Aniruddha Malpani, MD — Dr Anjali Malpani, MD Medical Director Vital Signs, Medical Practice Management Consultants, Mumbai, India. Email:[email protected]
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