Here's how you can advance your career by understanding the key responsibilities of a Practice Manager.

These days practice manager needs to have people’s skills, in addition to the experience in billing, coding, payor-mix, and cost structures. One can advance his/her career by understanding the emerging needs of practitioners and learning ways to reduce costs. For example, having experience in telehealth, lean methodology, analytics, and supporting tools and resources for clinicians (use of scribe, optimizing EMR, etc) can be critical for success.

My journey in digital health began with a spark – witnessing the transformative power of technology at CDAC. From PGIMER Chadgarh to Rajasthan hospital system to, being the Program Manager at MoHFW and leading the RCH Portal and ANMOL app on behalf of Deloitte impacted 300 million lives. Strengthening Free Drugs/Diagnostics at WHO & building accessible healthcare at Jhpiego fueled my passion. I supported Co-WIN's scalability at E&Y, supported the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission's building blocks at IQVIA and supported the NCD at HSTP. Today, at Enira, we are empowering volunteers to fight NCDs with digital tools. My journey is a testament to technology's power to revolutionize healthcare across India.

I find it helpful to be transparent and always give the “Why” and then prepared to answer Why one or 2 more times to help align the team with the objectives.

I agree! As a former Practice Manager, I was challenged every day. I was always learning something new. Healthcare is forever changing and you do wear many hats. You are the one that delegate and manage the entire practice from front office to back office. I learned how to build relationships with all of the doctors, nurses, pharmacy representatives, and vendors.

Across WHO, Jhpiego, Deloitte, EY & Enira, I always tried to identified emerging trends like RMNCHA+N, Free Drugs/Diagnostics, COVID-19 & NCD management, adapting to evolving healthcare needs. My implementation support on the 500M+ user RCH Portal & functional support to Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission's core functionalities showcase ability to envision and execute large-scale, sustainable digital health solutions. My focus on long-term impact, evident in MOHFW's RCH Portal, combined with adaptability during Co-WIN rollout, positions me as a specialist who can navigate challenges and drive success.

As the only provider in a small clinic, that recently reopened after a two-year closure due to COVID, I made it a priority to meet with the practice manager weekly. I did not make this a formal appointment as she is new in this role and I didn’t want to appear intrusive, but rather supportive. I would just drop in her office ,when she was free and initiate a conversation that was open ended. My goal was to encourage her to try new avenues to reengage with the community and increase patient numbers. I know she heard my message and suggestions, and acknowledgment that because she was busy , ways to accomplish this with minimal personal effort and time commitment. After a year, without any changes, I realized, she was just being polite.

When our team or one my departments had a PI goal (decreas pt. falls) we would post the goal for staff to see often in a staff break room or staff designated area, so it’s always a reminder what’s our goal(s) … An example was when my Rehab Team had well over 100 days without a patient fall and that became our new target. I believe we celebrated with pizza at a staff meeting soon after reaching over our target of 100 patient days without a patient fall. I truly believe that strategy helped staff motivation to achieve the goal.

One thing I found helpful is to do the work and know your departments, engage with your team members. Keep them updated and informed! Listen to your team and always follow up.

Technology is forever changing! I have worked with Epic for the last 10 years. I have seen lots of upgrades to enhance features to make it more efficient. Improvements on work flow in every aspect.

Effective team leadership is essential for practice management as it influences team dynamics, productivity, and ultimately, the success of the practice.

Yes, I agree! Building your team, keep the motivated! The key thing in leadership is effective communication, keeping everyone up to date and engaged. Lead by example!

My journey in health care is to provide a quality healthcare system that remains affordable and accessible to the community without compromising with quality and always remain updated in terms of technology and trained professionals