Family Practice Management

May 1999 Table of Contents

Articles

23 "Studies have shown that the patient normally speaks for an average of 18 seconds before the doctor interrupts."

35 An unstructured group of individuals is just a herd; a group that is led to become more than the sum of its members is a team.

45 Our groups come first, our practice sites and personnel come second, and our own needs and pride come third.

38	38	SPECIAL SECTION: HARNESSING THE POWER OF PHYSICIAN-LED GROUPS Physician-Owned Groups: The Best Strategy for Success Managed care has pushed physicians into new practice arrangements, but none is positioned for success like the physician-owned group. H. Jeffrey Wilkins, MD; Richard J. Pierotti, MD; Robert J. Motley, MD; Hal D. Cohan, MD; James L. Conrad, MD; R. Lawrence Derstine, MD; Peter Mertzanis, MBA, MHA; and A. Douglas Bender, PhD
	42	A Case Study in Developing a Successful Medical Group This group thrives by keeping doctors in control and by putting the interests of primary care physicians first. Al N. Hawks, MD
	45	Developing 'Groupthink' in a Multispecialty Group Following these 'commandments' leads doctors along a path of humility, commitment to the group -- and success. Joseph A. Cincotta, MD

23	23	PATIENT RELATIONS Improving Patient Communication in No Time Here are quick ways to evaluate and refine your communication style to better suit your patients' needs. Ellen J. Belzer, MPA
23	29	QUALITY CARE Holding the Gains in Quality Improvement In QI, enacting a positive change within your practice isn't the end. You must continue moving forward. James M. Giovino, MD
	35	LEADERSHIP Becoming an Effective Physician Leader Your clinical practice has planted the seeds of leadership skills, but they need intensive cultivation to flourish. Michael K. Magill, MD

Featured Departments

8 For some soloists, joining with an omnivorous group practice is akin to selling one's professional soul to the devil.

48 Using digital information is like doing a laparoscopic cholecystectomy: When something goes wrong, you just want to put your hands in there and fix it, but you can't.

50 What once would have been considered "the doctors' ideas" by certain staff members are now our ideas.

17	8	EDITORIAL Flying Solo Joe D. Haines Jr., MD
17	17	GETTING PAID Medicare, 2000 and You Take preventive steps now if you don't want your practice to catch the Y2K bug in its interactions with Medicare. Kent J. Moore
49	18	CODING AND DOCUMENTATION Should You Modify Your Use of Modifiers? They can help you code for your services more accurately and get paid for the work you really perform. Kent J. Moore
49	20	MONITOR Y2K Update: HCFA's Y2K hotline now available • OIG finds providers lagging in Y2K preparation • AHCPR announces new prevention topics • Charity care suffers in managed care • How salaried physicians are being paid • QI brings improvements in Medicare • Microchip enables precise drug delivery • Medical group acquisitions drop
	48	PRACTICE DIARY Excerpts From a Family Physician's Journal Sanford J. Brown, MD
	49	IMPROVING PATIENT CARE Finding Diamonds in the Trenches With the Nominal Group Process To harness the best ideas for improvement and to help build support for them, let everyone's voice be heard. Robert H. Moon, MD
	51	COMPUTERS Organize Your Data With Microsoft Excel Its ease of use and flexibility make it a helpful tool for managing information from the most mundane to the most complex. Thomas G. Savel, MD
	52	Our Featured Web Site: Clinical Decision Support from EDHome David C. Kibbe, MD, MBA
	55	ASK FPM FPs and productivity • ADA's effect on solo practice • Optimal practice size • Supervising MLPs
	60	BALANCING ACT Get a Life By Clearing the Clutter These techniques will turn your mountain of work into a manageable molehill. Dianna Booher
		Other Departments
	7	EDITOR'S PAGE
	13	LETTERS
	55	FPM QUIZ (EARN 3.5* HOURS OF CME CREDIT)*
	57	CLASSIFIEDS
	59	AUTHORS GUIDE

Copyright © 1999 by the American Academy of Family Physicians.
This content is owned by the AAFP. A person viewing it online may make one printout of the material and may use that printout only for his or her personal, non-commercial reference. This material may not otherwise be downloaded, copied, printed, stored, transmitted or reproduced in any medium, whether now known or later invented, except as authorized in writing by the AAFP.

Search FPM

FPM at a Glance

Information for Advertisers