Physical Therapy Products recently spoke with Harvey Schmiedeke, president of Survival Strategies, Burbank, Calif, about private-practice management issues.

What is the No 1 problematic practice-management area for PTs?

The No 1 problem is that private practices are launched by PTs who are excellent clinicians but have little or no training in practice marketing or management. A PT normally gets 1 hour to 1 day of “administrative” training in their formal education. It is only after PTs have opened their facility doors that they realize that they need to know: how to drive in steady, high-quality referrals; how to plan financially for increased profits; how to hire and retain the best staff; how to become the first choice by patients and referral sources; and how to monitor and manage their time and clinical productivity.

What practice-marketing elements are necessary in today’s marketplace?

A clinic gets new patient referrals from three primary sources: physician referrals, internal (friends, family, staff) referrals, and direct marketing. The skills PTs need include relationship-development basics, combined with PT-specific strategies, such as: knowing how to get doctors’ front offices to help you rather than hinder you in getting appointments; how to get the doctor to accept and treat you as a trusted colleague rather than a “bother”; and how to develop the relationship over the years.

In terms of direct marketing, whether you have direct access or not, each profession must have a clear and compelling brand identity. Our sponsorship of the Try PT First!^® campaign is doing this nationally. But, in addition, each clinic must have a clear and compelling identity that sets it apart from its competitors. This identity is based on the practice’s “core competencies.” To be the first choice, you must differentiate yourself through effective public relations and marketing.

In which particular departments of a physical therapy practice is there the most need for improvement to increase referrals/revenue?

In past years, it was enough to drive in new patients generally to see an improvement in revenue. Today, with dwindling managed-care reimbursements, the quality of patient referrals (including what contracts PTs agree to) is even more important. PTs need to examine their contracts and reject or “fire” insurance carriers that lose PTs their money. Referral-development efforts need to be directed at those sources of “Class A” patients that really bring the practice a viable return and profits, or the practice will soon be out of business.

Lastly, PTs need to know how to monitor and control the four benchmarks that drive profitability: average treatment revenues, average treatment costs, overhead, and write-offs. Each of these four factors has several internal practice functions that determine them.

We offer a series of free 1-hour Webinars, and a book I’ve recently written, The Keys to Private Practice Success, that give details and strategies on each of these points. You can register by e-mailing dustyd@survivalstrategies.com.