By Kem Tolliver and Shawntea Gordon
Every healthcare organization needs to develop financial processes and policies to be successful. This is where a revenue cycle management (RCM) plan comes into play. An RCM plan provides a strategic pathway forward for practices to manage the administrative and clinical aspects associated with processing claims, payments, and revenue generation.
The RCM process is critical to ensure healthcare organizations are financially healthy so they can stay focused on providing the best care to their patients. What goes into designing an RCM strategic plan? The answer is twofold: Understanding the intricacies of your organization and collaborating with your team to gain optimal efficiencies in your revenue cycle.
Here are some tips to build a successful RCM strategic work plan for your practice.
1) Dig into the data
The first step to creating an RCM strategy is to analyze your practice’s data. It is essential to identify optimal data sources and ensure the accuracy of the data. Unfortunately, data entry errors occur and missing validation processes happen. That’s why it’s so important to look at your data and review it for mistakes that can affect your bottom line. Remember, if you’re not looking at your data, you’re flying blind and doing guesswork.
With the right data analysis, you can see what’s working at a practice and identify key performance indicators (KPIs) that matter to your organization and align with your goals. By digging into the numbers and collaborating with others, you can trend spot and determine the best strategy to drive efficiencies and revenue into the practice.
2) Prioritize work plan development
Organizations that participate in advanced planning tactics will be better prepared for the future than those that operate reactively. With so many external factors in healthcare such as regulatory changes, complex payer guidelines and technology innovations, it is best for practices to control what they can by proactively planning for their organization's revenue cycles. This helps eliminate stress and ensures you’re never wondering where the money went at the end of the fiscal year.
