Not our usual topic of discussion, but an important one never-the-less - self-publishing. Why? I've been advised for years that having your own book was something that all business owners should do, that it helps establish you as an expert in your field, and this idea is just as true for clinicians as it is with other types of business owners. Since this is not my area of expertise, allow me to introduce you to my guest Brandy Agerbeck. Brandy is a visual thinking pioneer who demystified drawing...
Sep 08, 2022•1 hr 4 min
Opting out of Medicare has caused a lot of confusion for NPs and other providers. Not understanding what it means can lead to problems & fines. In this episode of the NP Business Matters Podcast (Episode #65) I address: The Social Security Act and how that impacts providers. When you can bill Medicare and when you don't have to. What it means by opting out of Medicare. Can you just refuse to see Medicare recipients? Can I just have them sign something that says they understand I don't bill M...
Jul 27, 2022•22 min•Ep. 65
Is it a recession? A slow down? Something else? Regardless, NPs need to understand how to protect their practices and even thrive. The news is quite unsettling these days on many fronts and there is a lot of talk in healthcare about the economy and if, when, and how it will impact healthcare and healthcare practices. Show notes: https://npbusiness.org/recession Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips YouTub...
Jun 26, 2022•27 min•Ep. 64
It’s not uncommon that NPs approach business with the idea that they can bootstrap their business. Indeed, if you do an internet search, you’ll find tons of articles on how to bootstrap your business. Indeed, there are many companies that did their startup this way. However, it just means they did not go after investors. They still have some startup capital. In episode #62 of the NP Business Matters podcast, we talk about the idea of bootstrapping and what it really means. We'll also take a look...
Jun 12, 2022•23 min•Ep. 63
There are several different kinds of policies and areas of coverage when it comes to business insurance. For practice owners, this can get a bit confusing. In this episode #62 of the NP Business Matters Podcast, I'm talking about the different kinds of insurance, why you might want to have them, and where to find them. I'll also talk briefly about professional liability insurance. https://npbusiness.org/businessinsurance Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusi...
Jun 05, 2022•15 min
In this episode of the NP Business Matters Podcast, I talk about Better Billing Habits If you are billing third-party payers, chances are you’ve run into a glitch or two. It might be time to take a look at your process, which will not only help you streamline what you are doing but just might reduce some of the problems. Let us know on the show notes at https://NPBusiness.org/betterbilling #NursePractitionerBusiness, #NPBusiness, #NPBO, #NoNPLeftBehind, #NPOwnedPractice #MedicalBilling Find us o...
May 15, 2022•27 min•Ep. 61
In this episode of the NP Business Matters Podcast, I talk about the different ways you can fund your Nurse Practitioner practice. And while it was all about funding for start-up, I do mention AR funding, which is more of a funding source when you are already in business (oops!). Show notes on our blog at https://NPBusiness.org/funding Upcoming Webinars: npbusiness.org/webinars #NursePractitionerBusiness, #NPBusiness #NPBO #NoNPLeftBehind #NPOwnedPractice Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www...
Apr 23, 2022•21 min•Ep. 59
Starting a practice is not an easy thing to do, nor is it a linear process. There are several moving parts, Many things are happening all at once and they are often interdependent on one another. That's where a framework comes in. Show notes & video version: https://NPBusiness.ORG/framework Workshop: https://NPBusiness.ORG/workshops Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips YouTube: https://YouTube.com/NP...
Apr 01, 2022•27 min•Ep. 58
There are 6 habits that practice owners have, often for the sake of time, that will hurt their practices. It's widely known that most businesses fail because of poor cash flow. These 6 habits directly contribute to negatively impacting your practices' financial health. Show notes: https://npbusiness.org/habitsthathurt NPBO™ Workshops: https://npbusiness.org/workshopts Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips...
Mar 27, 2022•24 min•Ep. 57
Business structures sometimes confuse new business owners, including nurse practitioners. This video gives an overview of what to consider, and what in my opinion, to avoid. The blog post and show. notes are here: https://npbusiness.org/businessstructure Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips YouTube: https://YouTube.com/NPBusiness...
Mar 20, 2022•20 min•Ep. 56
Cost per patient and payer mix are among the top numbers you need to track when we talk about knowing your numbers. It can make the difference between a practice that is financially solvent and one that is struggling. When I asked a group of NPs, they did not know the answer. It does not matter what kind of practice you have, you must understand your expenses - including what it cost you to see a patient, vs what you are getting paid to see that patient. Obviously, if you are getting paid less t...
Mar 13, 2022•13 min•Ep. 55
Have you ever wondered if your license was at risk? Nurse practitioners find their licenses, NPI's numbers, and ability to write prescriptions are valuable to many who do not have the protection of our licenses in their hearts. They are often more concerned with their own profits and meeting their needs. Unfortunately, this happens way to often. Listen in to this week's podcast and hear some of the situations, including myself, NPs have found themselves in. Episode and show notes at https://npbu...
Mar 06, 2022•24 min•Ep. 54
Nurse Practitioners often ask in our Facebook group, what does it cost to start a practice? As you might expect, the answers that group members give are all over the board. The question is essentially impossible to answer without further information. There are a lot of variables involved. What kind of practice? Where is it located? What is the size of the practice? And that's just to start with. In order to accurately estimate your startup cost, and ultimately, your operating cost, you are going...
Feb 27, 2022•36 min•Ep. 53
You want to start a business as a nurse or nurse practitioner and yet, you don't want to be in clinical practice. What should you do? In this episode of the NP Business Matters podcast, I talk about things you can do that are other than clinical practice. On the other hand, if you are interested in clinical business ideas, make sure you listen to episode #51 . Links and more @ https:npbusiness.org/business ideas Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Inst...
Feb 20, 2022•16 min
Do you ever find yourself trying to decide what kind of business you want to start? You are not alone in that. It's a question many nurses and NPs ask themselves. In this episode and the next of the NP Business Matters podcast, I'm discussing and giving you a lot of ideas. Today we'll discuss clinical business ideas, and in the next episode of the podcast, I'll cover non-clinical ideas. Show notes: https://npbusiness.org/clinicalideas Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePr...
Feb 13, 2022•30 min•Ep. 51
A few weeks ago I wrote a blog about creating a fee schedule for your practice. (linked below). It generated a lot of questions, and frankly some confusion. This video is to help clarify that article, and do give you a demo on just one way you can create your own practice's fee schedule. Shownotes: https://npbusiness.org/revisiting-the-fee-schedule Blog Article: 3 Simple Strategies to Set Your Fee Schedule - https://npbusiness.org/fee-schedule/ Visit us! Blog: NPBusiness.ORG - All about the busi...
Jan 30, 2022•20 min•Ep. 50
Meet Latrina Walden. She is a nurse practitioner, educator, business owner, and former healthcare administrator. a healthcare administrator turned nurse practitioner. Her approach to business and education is different in that she came to nursing from that background of being a healthcare administrator is a highly regulated and understaffed area of healthcare. Listen in to this episode to hear her words of wisdom for those who seek to start their businesses. Or if you prefer, you can catch this ...
Jan 16, 2022•50 min
A solid financial policy will do wonders for your practice. It will guide you and your staff as well as your patients on how to do business with your practice. It can help stabilize your cash flow. And it can keep you in compliance. In this episode of the NP Business Matters podcast Barbara talk's about: Why this is one of the very first policies a practice needs to create. The difference between policies and procedures. Why you don't need to start with a blank page and what you can do instead. ...
Dec 19, 2021•39 min•Ep. 47
Today I’m talking about the pros and cons of taking insurance vs having a cash-only practice. While this is just an overview, the goal is to give you some things to think about. One is not inherently better than the other. This is a question that comes up frequently in our FB group and many of the answers lack the depth needed to make an informed decision. Other questions expose some of the struggles and unmet expectations of newer practice owners. Like many beliefs (insurance is all bad, cash i...
Dec 05, 2021•31 min
What is it like to own your own practice in rural Idaho? Meet Katy Searle, FNP-BC. She practices primary care and rheumatology in a town of just over 400 people. The successful practice she has built has brought people from all around. But, it wasn't always this way. And in fact, when she wanted to purchase the practice from the owners that saw it as a losing proposition, they all but laughed in her face. However, she rose up and met the challenge! Listen in as we talk more about challenges, obs...
Nov 14, 2021•41 min•Ep. 45
Functional Medicine practices are very popular among nurse practitioners. In today's episode of the NP Business Matters Podcast, I speak with Erin Bagshaw, NP, who believes the future of primary care is functional medicine. Erin's practice was established in 2004 and was the first NP-owned primary care practice in the Washington, DC area. She discusses: the growth and evolution of her practice bringing in specialties transitioning from an insurance-based practice to a fee-for-service practice do...
Oct 31, 2021•46 min•Ep. 44
Every business needs to address a problem, and that is just what Ellen Harris, FNP did when she created the nation's first NP Hospitalist group. More at https:/NPBusiness.org/hospitalist Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips YouTube: https://YouTube.com/NPBusiness
Sep 26, 2021•57 min
Nurse Coaching is a very popular topic for both nurses and advanced practice nurses. Many Nurse Practitioners look forward to incorporating these skills into their existing practice, while others look to build a business around nurse coaching. On this episode of the NP Business Matters Podcast, we speak with Lyn McCright, RN, APRN, MPH, AHN-BC, HWNC-BC, and Teresa Walding, RN, BSN, NC-BC from Advancing Nurse Coaching. One of the principles that are foundational in the work they do and teach is r...
Sep 19, 2021•57 min
Not many people want to talk about business planning, and yet it's crucial! We already know the majority of businesses fail. A business plan, however, can give you a leg up and help put you on the path of business success. Visit npbusiness.org/bizplan for the show notes and all the resources I talk about and more. Find us on Social: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NursePractitionerBusiness Instagram: https://instagram.com/barbaracphillips YouTube: https://YouTube.com/NPBusiness...
Sep 05, 2021•31 min
Choosing which EHR to invest in is a big decision. It cost money in terms of dollars as well as the time it takes to master the software. It can affect your practice and your workload. And if you don’t like the one you started with, it’s not exactly a walk in the park to switch to another one. In this episode of the NP Business Matters podcast, I talk about the criteria the Institute of Medicine published for EHRs. In addition, I talk about CMS and the 21st Century Cures Act Final Rules. Plus we...
Aug 15, 2021•19 min•Ep. 40
Not a day goes by that I don’t hear from a nurse practitioner who wants to start a practice on weight loss. Obviously there is a great need for this and many ways to to approach this. Meet Karli Burridge, PA-C, MMS, FOMA who has a passion for obesity management. She talks about the complexity of obesity and how it affects almost every system of the body. Karlie has started programs within other practices and hospital services. Whether you want to add more obesity management to your practice, or ...
Jul 25, 2021•41 min•Ep. 39
Nurse Practitioners are pretty excited at the aspect of having their own practice in that’s true more so today than ever before especially since more states are opening up to full practice authority. Sometimes what happens though, Is in our excitement we tend to rush into things. And this is where we run into trouble. So on today’s podcast I’d like to go over some of the most common mistakes that I see with clinicians starting up their own practice. Mistakes to Avoid Unseasoned clinicians starti...
Jul 18, 2021•28 min
Nurses, nurse practitioners, and other healthcare providers are people first. And we sometimes come with the same stories that we see in our patients. Some of them are great, and others... not so much. As healthcare providers, as business owners, we, for the most part, know we are more effective when we are at our best. Unfortunately, the stressors of life as well as the immense stress that is put on us all can create unhealthy behaviors. Choosing Wellness is about overcoming some of those behav...
Jul 04, 2021•44 min
Lots of nurse practitioners in Michigan have asked about starting a business in their own practice. Unfortunately, according to the law, APNs cannot open their own practices. The reasoning behind this has been confusing for many NPs. In this episode of the NP Business Matters podcast, we talk with Dr. Denise Hershey, PhD, FNP-BC, the current president of the Michigan Council of Nurse Practitioners about this issue and other issues affecting NP practice in Michigan. https://npbusiness.org/micnp F...
Jun 20, 2021•50 min
Today I’m talking about closing your nurse practitioner practice. Perhaps that sounds weird since I’m the one that teaches how to start a practice, get it operating smoothly, and then growing the practice. However, there are a lot of reasons someone may want or need to close a practice, which I’ll mention in a bit. And it is a question we have received multiple times, so it’s time to talk about it more. It can be a complex subject and of course, have many variables. But let’s take a look at it f...
Jun 06, 2021•24 min
