Collecting fees serves your patients


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Practice Management TEAM TIPS FOR CAs

Collecting fees serves your patients
By Susan Hoy

Imagine it is payday, but at day's end your chiropractor passes you, wishing you a great weekend as he proceeds to the parking lot. Wait — he forgot to give you your paycheck.

Wouldn't you follow him to his car and remind him you work hard for your money and deserve your paycheck?

Are you willing to follow a patient into the parking lot because your chiropractor works hard and deserves his money?

Your chiropractor ought to have his pay, too, and collecting from patients is where the money comes from. Do you make yourself scarce at the front desk when a patient, owing money, is checking out? Would you rather write off a "hard to collect" balance instead of confronting the problem?

If you are uncomfortable with asking for money, consider this:

• The Law of Equal Exchange. For every service rendered, there has to be a payment for that service. Otherwise, the recipient of the service feels unequal in the transaction. To have a positive relationship, a rendered service needs compensation.

• Patients who owe money drop out. Owing money can spoil relationships. A patient who builds a balance will justify why he owes money, such as convincing himself he is getting unsatisfactory service or results. The higher the balance, the more frustrated and dissatisfied the patient becomes until he drops out.

• Patients who owe money usually don't get better. Once the patient believes she is getting less than adequate chiropractic care, she may subconsciously lose the will to get well — considering she would have to pay her balance if she got well.

Once she drops out, and you continue to send her bills, every statement generates more anger and frustration. Not only did she drop out, not get better, and get angry and frustrated, but now she is spoiling the reputation of your office by telling others of her dissatisfaction!

All of this happens because you felt uncomfortable asking for money. If you want your patients to get better and benefit from chiropractic care, then do them a favor and collect what they owe.

Setting the foundation for collecting

Reluctance to discuss fees and payments with patients may send the message that chiropractic care has no value — and it can set the foundation for financial disaster.

• Talk money up front. Informing the patient upfront of the charge for services and that she needs to pay the same day may eliminate future problems. Tell her your office accepts cash, check, or credit card, and you will check on her insurance coverage and explain her payment responsibility before she receives care.

• Develop a written financial policy. Have a written financial policy that patients sign when committing to ongoing chiropractic care. This policy should be explicit and explain payment options so the patient can receive the care she needs and still be affordable.

These options can include payment in advance, payment at time of service, or a payment plan.

• Set the rules of payment. Patients not only must commit to care, they must commit to be responsible for payment of their care. During the financial consultation, set rules for payment. Explaining that payment is not optional will help the patient be more compliant or eliminate patients who see not paying as an option.

Patients who leave the clinic and owe money rarely have anything "good" to say. Taking a firm stand about payment is absolutely necessary if you wish to have a financially sound business. No one should be discussing payment options with patients unless they are comfortable in doing so and believe in the benefit of chiropractic care. You must believe in your care, and believe in the value of your service.

By understanding that you actually serve your patients by collecting what is due allows everyone to win!

Susan Hoy is an award-winning team trainer and consultant. She presents training seminars for teams throughout the country and is the author of two team-training manuals. The newest is entitled Systemize, Organize, Simplify. Susan can be reached at 215-674-0130, suzzhoy@aol.com, or through her Web site at www.beefitup.net.

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