The Patient Portal: Methods to Facilitate Physician Profitability

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The Patient PortalMethods to Facilitate
Physician Profitability

• Paul C. Seel MD, M.B.A.
• Medical Director Sophrona Solutions
• May 7, 2008

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Personal Background

• Clinical nephrology (chronic kidney failure)
  large, entrepreneurial, single specialty practice
• Bullets, busy work and BS I can name that tune
  in..38 bars
• Alternatives Disease management, Pay for
  Performance
• Medical Director for Sophrona Solutions a
  healthcare information technology companypatient
  portal

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Impact on the Patient Business Cycle
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What is a patient portal?
Cost efficient, two-way practice-patient
communication conducted over the internet.

• Gives patients 24/7/365 Convenience
• Reduces practice phone calls
• Gathers valuable patient data
• Secure, asynchronous communication

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Patient Portal Technology

• ASP (application service provider) architecture
  is common.
• Typically no additional hardware needed.
• Usually licensed as a service and not sold.

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Patients Want the Convenience of This Type of
Access to Their Physicians
HarrisInteractive Health Care Poll

• 74 of patients desire the ability to communicate
  with their physicians via some sort of e-mail
• 8 of patients report such access

http//www.harrisinteractive.com/news/newsletters/
wsjhealthnews/ WSJOnline_HI_Health-CarePoll2006vol
5_iss16.pdf
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Physicians Need Help with Profitability

• Stagnant reimbursements
• Rising costs
• Little focus on the how and what
• Inability to link specific patients with their
  wants and needs

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Survival of the FittestAbility of Physician
Owned Groupsto Remain Independent
Financial Viability
Extinction
Family Practice
General Internal Medicine
Ophthalmology Plastic Surgery
General Surgery ObGyn
Procedural Medical Specialties
Non-Procedural Medical Specialties
Surgical Specialties ENT Ortho
Target for Corporate Medicine
Consolidation
Receptive to Business Solutions
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Multi-specialty Care DeliveryA Different Value
Proposition
Primary Care Subsidy
Family Practice
General Internal Medicine
General Surgery ObGyn
Ophthalmology Plastic Surgery
Procedural Medical Specialties
Non-Procedural Medical Specialties
Surgical Specialties ENT Ortho

Patient Referrals
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What Do Physician Owned Practices Need?

• Business solution vs. a software product
• Current products too costly, labor intensive and
  disruptive to current work flow
• A clear value proposition required
• Adapt their work flow and services to the
  available information technology
• Relationship with a trusted business partners to
  help with change

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Patient Acquisition

• Reduce patient acquisition costs
• Low cost web marketing
• A Nashua NH practice increased web traffic 700
  with a 5x ROI
• Increased word of mouth traffic from happy
  patients
• Increase stickiness link practice web site to
  front office functionality
• Start a meaningful interaction with the initial
  click-on-line appointment scheduling

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Patient Registration

• New Patients register on-line
• Demographic and clinical information gathered and
  recorded
• Convenience and empowerment
• Potentially less errors
• Improved patient flow, less time wasted, more
  thoughtful responses
• Decrease no-shows with skin in the game

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Patient Care Lower Costs and Increased Access

• Match the severity of the problem with the
  intensity of care one office code doesnt fit
  all
• On-line consultationeVisits
• Substitute for a face-to-face visit
• Asynchronous communication more efficient than
  telephonic
• Disease managementincreased touch to improve
  outcomes in HTN, CHF, CKD
• Efficient communication for routine issuesmed
  clarifications, side effects, refills

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What does it cost to provide a Service?
Profitability Analysis of a Phone Call
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Profitability Analysis
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Comparison eVisits vs. Phone Medicine?

• Financial
• Net loss with a phone call -
  39.33
• Net profit from an
• eVisit 3.75
• Overall difference
• 43.08

• Non-Financial
• Improved documentation
• Save time-avoid phone tag
• Asynchronous advantages

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Billing

• Efficient collection of EM components through
  new patient registration and pre-registration
• On-line Bill PaymentPCI compliance
• Facilitate collection with credit card balance
  billing

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Patient Retention

• Life style questions to Segment Patient
  Population
• Customized Marketing
• Discretionary goods and services
• Routine follow-ups enabling the medical home
  concept
• Condition specific communications
• Increase Word-of-Mouth Referrals

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Revenue Enhancement Refractive Surgery
Address interest at the time of the office
visit E-mail information Prior to the visit
Interest in Refractive Surgery
Refractive Surgery Consultation
Refractive Surgery
Metrics
1. Refractive surgery consultations/ Refractive
surgery leads 2.Refractive surgery cases/
Refractive surgery consults
3. Comparison of cost to acquire PRM vs.
traditional
4. Sales cycle length portal vs. traditional
method
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Summary

• Physician owned practices face deteriorating
  profitability and extinction
• A patient portal can enhance the value
  proposition for currently available electronic
  systems
• Effective solutions from trusted business
  partners and an ongoing relationship

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Questions
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Thank You