Now more than ever before, specialty practice administrators must think critically about balancing clinical and administrative skills with patient outcome goals and experiences.

It should go without saying that Revenue Cycle Management (RCM) Services streamline claims processing and support financial stability. But, many specialty providers still don’t fully grasp the significant role that RCM plays in patient engagement and brand confidence building.

According to United States Census Bureau data, there are more than 691,000 thousand physicians and surgeons practicing medicine in the US. Many of these healthcare providers work in private practices and clinics, often with administrative support staff and other healthcare personnel.

Over the past two decades, revenue cycle solutions have evolved from a traditional back-office challenge to a major focus throughout the organization. Every individual in the medical practice from the C-suite to the exam room is expected to keep a critical eye on the revenue stream.

Forty percent of healthcare management professionals surveyed by Oracle reported their current systems couldn’t meet specific industry requirements. RCM services that leverage financial, clinical, and other related data generate valuable opportunities to improve workflow patterns.

Health rule challenges continue, even as October 1, 2015 looms. Individual insurance benefits fluctuate as employers scramble to control costs, making it increasingly difficult for hospitals and physicians to stay on top of diverse policy provisions and exclusions. Myriad new regulations and mandates for providers and employers also means more responsibility for paying for health care services falls into the hands of patients.

You’ve experienced problems in the past with how you billed your patients, leading to missed payments as well as a much longer revenue cycle for those that do pay. Now you are growing more serious about finally using dedicated software that was built with your organization’s needs in mind. As you and your staff prepare to bring a new medical billing system into your practice, you will likely have some pressing questions that need answering before you can make your selection. Here are the answers to your top five medical billing system questions.

Managing highly-specialized implementation, such as the shift to ICD-10, requires highly-skilled team members. Over the past few years, hospitals and health systems have invested hundreds of millions of dollars collectively to prepare for the complex implementation. And, while physicians have not faced the arduous challenges that vendors, payers and hospitals have experienced, they can benefit from the lessons learned. For example, outsourcing medical coding and billing services may be the key to managing a healthy revenue stream and improving your practice as a whole.

Revenue cycle management (RCM) must evolve for health care organizations to not only remain solvent, but to thrive in the current environment. The best path to managing the evolution, or more precisely, where to start the journey, depends on which industry expert you believe. However, there is a common thread whether you are listening to a marketing expert, a customer service coach or a financial advisor – process optimization is business-critical.

The following excerpt is from an article found on Healthcare Finance News. It was written by James Larson and Nancy Henry. Just like focusing on providing quality care to patients is critical to a health care practice, bottom line management can make the difference between successful claims handling and a battle of denials and errors. Time and again we hear clients express frustration that collections are down, and more often than not it’s due to time spent dealing with inefficiencies and mistakes in the back office.