Practice Management
Urgent message: The entrepreneurial nature of urgent care “business” means that care providers are frequently thrust into management decision-making, for which they are unprepared—putting them at risk for common but avoidable mistakes. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Owners and operators in the healthcare industry have a lot on their plate. There’s no getting …
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Warburg Pincus, a leading global private equity firm focused on growth investing, plans to merge DocuTAP and Practice Velocity—the two leading technology and services companies serving clinics in the urgent care marketplace. David Stern, MD, CEO of Practice Velocity will serve as CEO of the combined company. Eric McDonald, CEO of DocuTAP, will assume a new role as a board member and strategic advisor for the merged business. The teams plan to announce more details …
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Urgent message: In today’s rapidly changing and hypercompetitive business environment, you don’t have to “reinvent yourself” to become “indispensable.” Rather, you should focus on adding complementary skills to your current strengths. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. The unfortunate reality of today’s managerial world is that turnover happens all the time. Moreover, it happens …
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Urgent message: An urgent care center cannot afford to retain employees who undermine work, demoralize others, run off patients, or who seek vengeance. But dealing with toxic employees is more complicated than simply firing them; urgent care operators must have a strategy. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care, LLC and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. The “toxic employee” is one of …
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Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care, LLC and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Urgent message: In an era of widespread worker disengagement, one simple way to improve morale in your urgent care operation is to embrace a “culture of gratitude” which starts with saying the simple phrase, thank you. America has a workplace engagement problem, as evidenced by a consensus …
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Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Urgent message: Coworkers who change personalities when the boss isn’t around are a reality of the workplace. However, there are steps you can take to handle such toxic colleagues, and improve workplace morale and team dynamics. Every urgent care center has that one employee who is utterly pleasant …
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Urgent message: The life of an urgent care physician entails having compassion for patients, but to prevent the very real phenomenon of physician burnout, compassion should start with yourself. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. We’ve all heard the announcement on the airline, “Before assisting other passengers, please secure your own oxygen first.” Yet, physicians and …
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Urgent message: Helping staff understand the difference between true service animals, vs those that merely bring comfort to patients, is a good first step toward ensuring your waiting room is safe and comfortable for all—and that your urgent care operation is in compliance with applicable laws. If the emergency department can claim to have seen everything, the urgent care can claim to have seen almost everything. This includes patients who believe it is their right …
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Urgent message: In a world that is ultra-competitive, there is no way to avoid envy in the workplace—even a workplace that exists to help others, like an urgent care center. Whether due to promotions, unequal compliments from a boss, or who gets the new office chair, employees are often envious of their coworkers. From executives to interns, or physicians to medical assistants, envy is a trap we must learn to avoid. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, …
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Urgent message: While many rising managers believe there is virtue to “burning the midnight oil,” in reality they may be setting a bad example that undermines their team’s motivation, effectiveness, and even ethics, while putting their own health at risk. Alan A. Ayers, MBA, MAcc is Chief Executive Officer of Velocity Urgent Care and is Practice Management Editor of The Journal of Urgent Care Medicine. Great managers are always looking for ways to improve, become …
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