THE GP PRACTICE

The Numbers you may need

Shay Conroy

Dolmen Family Medical Practice

Carlow

THE NUMBERS GAME All GP practices are different

- Private/GMS Mix- Age Profile- Urban / Rural- Consultation Length

Ultimately the decision on practice style belongs to the GP partners

Our function as Practice Manager is to help by providing the information required to make that decision

THE NUMBERS GAME

So what kind of practice do your GPs think they have?????

THE NUMBERS GAME

VOCATION ????

THE NUMBERS GAMEOR

THE NUMBERS GAME

VOCATION

Versus

HARD NOSED BUSINESS

THE NUMBERS GAME Ultimately it is a mix of both.

The point on the line between the 2 is based on the GP Partners

The style of practice does have an influence on financial expectations from the business.

Factors involved are number of sessions per week, minimum consultation time that the GP is comfortable working with.

Our function is to help by providing the information. The info that we need is similar regardless of the style of practice

Number of planes in the air

% of seats filled (CAPACITY)

Price per seat €

Turnaround time

Fuel cost per passenger

Labour cost per passenger

AVERAGE GP PRACTICE Number of GPs per session

Number of patients seen per day

Average consultation fee

Turnaround time

Overhead cost per patient

Labour cost per patient

THE NUMBERS GAME Accountant will tell you the financial figures he wants

for year end. However his work is usually long after the event and

we need weekly and monthly management figures

I plan to deal with what I feel is important in order to maximise the efficiency of the business.

Patients seen, Average income per consultation, Ensuring you are paid for all work. Reduce

unnecessary work with no value to the practice

IT IS VERY EASY TO BE BUSY ALL OF THE TIME

THE NUMBERS GAME Debtors - Ask Barry O’Brien

1% has to be real and achievable.

Staff: Efficiency needs to be the keyword. Avoid doing a job twice. GP Co-operation is essential. Use your computer system to the max.

Electronic referrals, Use PCRS online to max.

Reduce unnecessary phone time ! Use text messages to send normal results?

COSTS GP Salaries Nurse Salaries Admin Salaries Rent/Rates/Mortgage GP Insurance Light ,Heat, Maintainance Computers Telephone

COSTS Bulk of costs are GP costs, nurse and admin

wages, rent/rates and Medical Insurance. No point in wasting a lot of effort in places

where return is not great e.g. Phone bill of €5000 per year. A 10 % saving might need a lot of hassle to be achieved but will save €500 per year.

You could get the same return by seeing 1 extra private patient PER MONTH between all the GPs!!

Before you have a blanket staff wage reduction apply the same logic and maybe you might get far more by increasing productivity from the staff

PATIENT NUMBERS How many patients has your practice? Are you sure? How do you know? GMS . Can you compare your monthly list

from PCRS with your own list? We use Socrates PCRS importer which

does not just import the full list but it allows you to see the differences and amend/query them

Are you being paid for everyone?- New Babies

- Private Nursing Homes- Patients who you think have cards!

GMS FEES

Consider putting up this list in the waiting room or at reception to counter the popular belief that GPs receive €50 for every visit by GMS patients!!!!

GMS FEES STC payment

E, T, C = €44.26 H = €45.00

ECG }Sutures } = €26.81Cryo }Nebuliser = €40.23

IUCD = €72.21

VACCINATIONS Registration € 37.78

V1, V2, V3 + MMR €125.86

PCV x 3 @ €18.82 ea € 56.46

Hib Booster € 18.82

Bonus (95% Uptake) € 60.00

TOTAL €298.92

INCOME Watch your vaccine bonus. Inform

health board of patients who move out. Ensure that you send in signed refusal forms to health board.

Claim for maternity miscarraiges, single vists who dont return and make sure you claim for extra visits for diabetes, hypertension, threatened miscarraige etc

Have a system to check that you have claimed for all Temporary GMS patients as well as all special services (STC)

INCOME Ensure you maximise your income from

VHI. Patients are delighted to get something back for their subscription

Be careful about sending out legal reports without payment.

Make sure all GPs charge the same in general.

INCOME

Audit number of patients seen per day and per GP at least 2 months per year

Also income per GP

Ensure that you are getting full practice support subsidy.€62000 for an experienced secretary and nurse in a single handed practice (top of scales and 1200n patients. = €51.66 per patient per anumn (62000/1200)

= €4.30 per patient per month