The Better Outcomes Show

Is Value-Based Care Too Much for Independent Healthcare Practices?I've talked about the consolidation in the healthcare market before. I recently sat down with the folks at StrataPT to talk about PE firms buying up healthcare practices and how small, independent healthcare practices are beginning to feel the pressure. But one thing I haven't discussed on the show is what exactly has caused the consolidation in healthcare (big players buying up little players). Over the years, many independent healthcare practices have been purchased by either private equity firms or health systems/hospitals. But why? Part of the drive for this consolidation stems from economies of scale. Big healthcare systems and hospitals leverage their size to combat rising overhead costs, declining reimbursement, and even compliance and the ability to participate in alternative payment models. That last one is an interesting take that I hadn't considered before. But, over the holidays I read an article entitled Value-Based Payment and Vanishing Small Independent Practices. In this article, the authors argue that one driving factor for the consolidation in the healthcare market stems from the fact that value-based payment models require a lot of administrative work & data management that independent healthcare practices struggle to manage. So, this week, I take a dive into this idea and discuss some ways that independent healthcare practices can maintain viability in the world of big healthcare. What we cover in this Episode:-Understanding how Big Healthcare benefits from value-based payment models -How economies of scale help improve data exchange and combat decreasing reimbursement in healthcare-Understanding Value in Healthcare-Challenges in running independent healthcare practices -Independent Healthcare practice as a business -Some strategies that independent healthcare practices can employ to remain competitive -How to create an effective healthcare positioning strategy to thrive in the current healthcare landscape Full episode note: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-147Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

What is Healthcare Positioning? When I talk to clients about Healthcare Positioning, the first question to address is “What is positioning?” And that’s a fair question. I usually tell people that positioning involves communicating the value you/your company creates for your customers/clients in a way that differentiates you from competitors and builds perceived credibility & authority to your ideal target market. This week on the podcast, I take a deep dive into the idea of healthcare positioning strategy. I discuss how to develop an effective positioning, some challenges and pitfalls that many of my clients have fallen victim to, and some thoughts around the nuances of positioning in healthcare vs. other industries. What we cover in this Episode:-Define healthcare positioning strategy-Marketing strategies that work in healthcare-Communicating Value in Healthcare-The goals of healthcare positioning -Identifying your target market in healthcare -Using healthcare positioning to make strategic business decisions -How to create an effective healthcare positioning strategy Full episode note: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-146Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

A year in review: Healthcare in 2024It seems like only yesterday that I was planning for 2024. Scheduling out projects for the year, booking speaking engagements, and lining up interviews for the podcast were in full swing. Then, in the blink of an eye, we arrive at the end of 2024. And what a year it has been. From cyberattacks to breaking healthcare innovations, 2024 has had its share of big news stories. So, this week, I take the time to do a "2024 Year in Review: Healthcare".What we cover in this Episode:-The Change Healthcare Cyberattack and it's downstream effects -The Expansion of & Breakthroughs in Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare-Hospital and Healthcare Closures and Financial Troubles-Remote Patient Monitoring and Telehealth & Virtual Healthcare -Anti-Trust issues and litigation in Healthcare Tech-Health Equity comes to the forefront of healthcare policy discussions-Integration & Interoperability in Healthcare Tech-Leadership in healthcare amidst tragedy and turmoil -Healthcare policy shifts and the future political landscape for healthcare in the USFull show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-145Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

How do we begin implementing technology-enabled healthcare services?We cover this topic a lot on the show, but technology-enabled healthcare continues to receive a lot of attention. Much of the conversation and media around technology and healthcare innovation revolves around the innovation itself. We hear about the benefits, features, and capabilities of these new solutions and innovations. But, one often overlooked topic in healthcare innovation includes practical implementation. How do you actually take these new innovations and tools and use them to meaningfully improve healthcare? How do we make sure that a new software, device, or platform ends up actually making healthcare better, rather than just a neat marketing ploy?So, this week, I dive into the research around technology-enabled healthcare. Parts of this podcast come from a few different presentations I've recently given on this topic covering digital health, implementing virtual healthcare services, and using data in healthcare decision-making.What we cover in this Episode:-Define digital health & virtual service delivery-Applying digital health tools in clinical practice-Research around digital health and its effectiveness-Remote Patient Monitoring and Telehealth-Will artificial intelligence replace clinicians?-How technology enabled healthcare solutions will alter reimbursement and revenue models-Achieving Better Outcomes by implementing technology in healthcareFull show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-144Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

A Few Thoughts on Healthcare Positioning StrategyI'm talking to a lawyer the other day about business, scaling, growth, and specialization. As we're talking, he says something in passing that totally exemplifies both the concept and the power of a strong positioning strategy. He says, "You know, it's like if I was a furniture maker and someone asked if I could give them a price to build a deck. Sure, I have all the tools necessary to do that job, but if I say yes, they're not going to be happy, and I'm not going to be happy. So I just say "no" to those types of inquiries, even if there's good money involved."I know I've said this before on interviews: but the worst deals I've ever put together —the worst clients, worst results, most stressful projects— have all come from saying "yes" to jobs that I should have rejected. I quickly learned with my consulting work to only accept projects and clients that fit in my positioning. And, in broad areas, healthcare has adopted this idea of specialization. Orthopedic MDs don't accept cardiology referrals etc.However, within each specialty area, there are countless specializations or sub-specialties. For example, take Physical Therapy as an example...Often times, I hear one of two problems from practice owners, each of which can be fixed with a good dose of positioning:1. Too many referrals2. Not enough referralsInterestingly, no one ever says "I think we're good. We have enough referrals."  It's either "we have way too many" or "we need any referrals we can get". But how does positioning help solve either of these problems? It solves these problems like this:Too many referrals? Look through the variability in those referrals. If you have a selected specialization (positioning strategy), and you have more referrals than you have capacity to handle, you simply take all of those excess referrals that don't fit in your stated specialization and refer them out to other providers.The patients will be happy, because they're not on a wait list. The referring provider will be happy because their patients will get seen sooner, AND they'll think of you with more respect in your area of specialization...Too few referrals? Reach out to ONLY the referral sources that match your stated positioning (specialization). Often, when the schedule gets light, clinic owners and managers reach out to anyone who could possibly refer them a warm body to treat...This does harms the practice in 2 ways:1. Patients don't get the best results (which means less positive reviews and likely less referrals from that referring provider)2. They just sound desperate (no one like groveling...)In addition, you only have so many resources to commit towards marketing & business development. Having a clear and specific positioning keeps you from spreading those resources too thinly to make a real, meaningful difference in referral generation.What we cover in this Episode:-Positioning Strategy in Healthcare-Putting positioning to work in Lead Generation -Building a team and culture at a healthcare business using positioning-Reducing the stress involved in business development strategy-Achieving Better Outcomes by dialing in your healthcare positioning strategyFull show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-143Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Feeling Burnt Out in Your Healthcare Practice? We hear about it all the time: low margins, increasing costs, decreasing reimbursement, staffing issues, etc. And those are just the most common issues cited by people within the industry. But, as I've already shared, private healthcare practice has the potential to be a great business. So, if you're a practice owner who's feeling burnt out, here's one thing I think will transform your healthcare practice. This week, I share the one thing that can transform a private healthcare practice. Here it is: Set aside one full day of "business work". On this day, you will work on ONLY one of the following:-Working on the business (developing SOPs, etc. to guide routine operations)-Business planning or vision-casting-Thinking about the business-Reading/Learning/Self-development in the area of business & entrepreneurship (NO CEU courses!)I'm not saying this will "make it rain" at your business, but I've been doing this since 2021 and here's what it has done for me:-It gives me dedicated time to fix "problems" in the business that area always nagging but never get done if you're in the clinic all day-It gets me excited about the business & the team-It helps get my head out of the daily grind and into the 30,000ft view-It has greatly reduced stress. What we cover in this Episode:-Value-Drivers in a healthcare business-The importance of taking time off to work on the business -Building a team and culture at a healthcare practice -Putting pieces in place for growth and scale -Reducing the stress involved in managing a private healthcare practice -Understanding the importance of identifying key metric in your healthcare practice -Achieving Better Outcomes by working on personal & professional development as a practice owner Full show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-142Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Is Big Healthcare a Net Positive or Net Negative for Society?We hear this all the time: in the news, online, and during interviews with healthcare professionals. We hear that "Big Healthcare" is causing extreme damage to society. People cite things like: delayed authorizations, denied care, reducing provider reimbursement or payment, etc. Books have been written about how Big Healthcare Became Big Business. It seems large healthcare conglomerates garner most, if not all, of the criticism for problems within the healthcare system. But one must ask the question: are large healthcare companies inherently a negative thing within the industry? Do they play a role in cost reduction and access to needed healthcare services? This week, I talk a little bit about this idea of "Big Healthcare" and whether it's a net negative or a net positive for society as a whole. I also discuss what small healthcare business owners should think about when it comes to running their businesses  planning for the future.What we cover in this Episode:-Value-Drivers in a healthcare business-Understanding the role that large healthcare companies play in the industry-The problems with a Fee For Service system in healthcare -Maintaining Human Connection within the big healthcare space -How the incentives in today's healthcare environment lead to clinician burnout and wasted time-Understanding the savings flow in industries like healthcare -Achieving Better Outcomes by creating a valuable healthcare businessFull show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-141Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Real value-drivers in any healthcare business involve more than simple accounting trickery. Increasing value involves mitigating buyer-side risk after the sale. ------What are the real value drivers in healthcare businesses?If you do a search on the internet for healthcare business valuations, you end up getting results that mention EBITA, multiples, and add-backs. Often the discussion falls into "accounting tricks" that can increase the sale price of the business by a few thousand dollars. Or, the conversation begins flying high in the sky, giving a 30,000 ft view of the "strategic" changes that owners can make to "dramatically increase the value" of their businesses. The problem is that those conversations rarely get down into the tactical. So, this week, I talk about specific actions business owners can take to not just increase the "valuation" of their business, but actually increase the value of their business. When I say "increase the value", I mean increase the multiple of EBITA used to create a purchase offer. For example, I want to discuss ways to go from a purchase price of 1-2x EBITA to 3-4x or even 10x. What we cover in this Episode:-My journey of purchasing a physical therapy clinic -Value-Drivers in a healthcare business-Leadership and management in a valuable healthcare business -Building a team to delegate key business functions to -Go to Market Strategy for a successful healthcare business-How to prevent burnout and wasted time-Achieving Better Outcomes by creating a valuable healthcare business Full Show Notes & Links: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-140Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

What does a Successful Healthcare Tech Company do Differently?When I work with clients in the healthcare technology space on their go to market strategy, inevitably we end up talking about operations within the company and how things get done. Most people know that only a fraction of startups end up becoming successful, sustainable businesses. The question is, why? What sets those successful startups apart from their peers? Why is it that they made it while many of their competitors fell to the wayside? Obviously, there's the whole product-market fit piece, but successful companies also operate differently than their peers. One overlooked area is the "culture" of the organization. A successful healthcare tech company has a culture that promote productivity, but also ensures team cohesion and fulfillment.So, this week, I sit down with Jonas Duss, former CEO & cofounder of Kaia Health to discuss this very topic. We cover his career trajectory and experience running Kaia, and then we dive into creating and managing a health culture and team in a successful healthcare tech companyWhat we cover in this Episode:-Jonas' career path starting as an engineer and moving towards co-founder at Kaia Health-The key elements of business growth especially for a health tech startup-Starting a healthcare tech business that scales-Building a team for your healthcare tech business-Go to Market Strategy for a successful healthcare tech company-How to prevent burnout and wasted time-Achieving Better Outcomes by creating a culture that takes care of its teamGet full show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-139Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com#healthcaretech #healthtech #healthcarestartup #startup #healthcare #healthcareinnovation If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Get full show notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-138Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.comHow do go about starting and scaling a multi million dollar healthcare business?When I speak and train at healthcare organizations and tech startups, the topic of scale & growth come up regularly. Often, this is in the context of go to market & business development strategy. Many founders and owners of healthcare businesses aspire to grow a multi million dollar healthcare business. But, healthcare's complexity poses challenges to new healthcare ventures as they start and scale. So, this week, I sit down with Mike Murphy from Sunstone Management Advisory to discuss how he went about building a business to half a billion dollars or revenue, his work doing healthcare turnarounds, and the keys to building and scaling healthcare businesses into multi million dollar companies. What we cover in this Episode:-Mike's career path starting as an underwriter and transitioning to managing insurance plans -The key elements of business growth -Starting a healthcare business in a way that scales-Building a leadership team for your healthcare business-Go to Market Strategy in healthcare -Understanding who your target market is-Achieving Better Outcomes through solid business practices  If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

What are some key skills for Healthcare Leaders & Executives?Last week on the podcast, I discussed my nonclinical career path and how I went from staff clinician to a healthcare business consultant and practice owner.  After that episode, I received a few emails asking for specific skills or areas of personal development that help in advancing from a clinical role into healthcare administration or leadership. I figured it was worth exploring, and actually writing down what I considered to be key skills for healthcare leaders & executives.So, this week, I dive into the 5 key skills, or characteristics, that I consider key factors in transitioning from clinical work to healthcare leadership and/or executive roles.What we cover in this Episode:The importance of intentionally planning your professional growth and developmentCommunication as a key skill for healthcare leaders and executivesStarting a healthcare business with no fundingUsing Data to make decisions or create communication piecesKey principles in managing and leading a healthcare businessThe importance of crucial conversationsBeginning to take a high-level, value-creation based vision of your work and rolesAchieving Better Outcomes by stepping out of the clinic to affect systemic healthcare improvementsWe post videos of certain podcast episodes, including this episode, which can find on the YouTube Channel.Full episode notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-137Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Full episode notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-135Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.comAre you a clinician considering a nonclinical career path? I get asked regularly about how I got started on my nonclinical career path. Whether I'm speaking at a conference or event, or working with clients on business development strategy projects, it seems people are interested in learning about how an occupational therapist went from treating patients in the clinic to working as a healthcare positioning strategist. So, this week, we're continuing our series on nonclinical career paths with this solo episode where I break down every role I've held since graduating in 2012. I walk through each job, what I took from each one, how I made the step into the next role, and things that I thought were key factors in skilling up for these nonclinical roles. What we cover in this Episode:-The importance of taking every learning opportunity available to you early in your career-Looking at every position as an opportunity to grow your network and skills -Starting a healthcare business with no funding-Purchasing a healthcare business -Key principles in managing and leading a healthcare business-How I used LinkedIn to get my first nonclinical consulting role -Understanding business models and incentives and how that relates to obtaining nonclinical roles-Achieving Better Outcomes by stepping out of the clinic to affect systemic healthcare improvements  If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Want me to help you put together a business development strategy that actually drives conversations with qualified prospects? Click here to schedule a call with me. It’s free. It’s 30 minutes. And, if nothing else, you’ll walk away with some insights that you can apply on your business that day. https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryHow do you start in healthcare copywriting?Maybe you've heard of copywriting. Maybe you haven't. I tell people that I work with that copywriting is probably one of the most valuable skills that entrepreneurs and business owners can have. You don't necessarily need to be the best copywriter, but you should understand what makes for good healthcare copywriting. That skill opens up the doors to many opportunities, for business owners or clinicians looking to make a nonclinical transition. And, as I've discussed on the Strata Stories podcast, content creation and copywriting allows clinicians to monetize their expertise in more ways than simply direct clinical care.So, this week, we're continuing our nonclinical careers series with a conversation with Krista Frahm about her transition from clinician to healthcare copywriter and now marketing strategist.What we cover in this Episode:-The value clinicians can bring to nonclinical roles-How to delivery high impact services as a copywriter or marketing strategist -Starting a healthcare copywriting business-Networking to build your business-Coaching and consulting clients to deliver upstream services-Achieving Better Outcomes by leaving the clinic to help other businesses succeed with copywritingLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Have you thought about transitioning to nonclinical roles as a clinician?It seems like I receive more messages and emails these days about transitioning to nonclinical roles as a clinician. When I first left clinical work in 2017 to work as a management consultant, many colleagues were interested, but ultimately, they didn't want to leave clinical work entirely. Part of this is likely due to the fact that many clinicians find there way to healthcare as a sort of calling rather than a "job". The other part of this has to be related to risk tolerance. Many clinicians have traditionally seen nonclinical work as "more risky" than using their credential to work as a clinician in their given specialty. That being said, in recent years, the content about nonclinical roles has increased, and so has people's interest in this topic. So, this week, we're kicking off a miniseries all about transitioning to nonclinical roles as a clinician. We'll cover this topic from a few different "stages" or phases: 1) early in the process, 2) nonclinical roles as an employee, 3) entrepreneurship in nonclinical areas. This week's episode starts us off with phase one. In this episode, I share an interview with an Occupational Therapist (and former student of mine) Hayley Carver to discuss her decision to transition to a nonclinical role, some of the resources she's found helpful, and coaching programs and their value in the process of transitioning to these nontraditional roles. What we cover in this Episode:Challenges in traditional clinical roles The risk of burnout in clinical careDeciding to leave the clinic in pursuit of nontraditional or nonclinical rolesNetworking to find opportunities in healthcareCoaching and consulting programs to bridge the gap between the clinic and nonclinical opportunitiesAchieving Better Outcomes by leaving the clinic to make a larger impact on the healthcare industryWant me to help you put together a business development strategy that actually drives conversations with qualified prospects? Click here to schedule a call with me. It’s free. It’s 20 minutes. And, if nothing else, you’ll walk away with some insights that you can apply on your business that day. https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

How can real-time data help improve health equity and population health?We've talked about the social determinants of health before. We've also covered using data to improve healthcare policy and decision-making. But, where do those two things intersect? How can data be used to improve health equity across populations, geographies, and other factors? This week, I sit down with Perfecto Sanchez from EquityQuotient, a dynamic health equity data and insights platform.What we cover in this Episode:-The social determinants of health-Using data to improve healthcare decision-making-Challenges in aggregating data to make the most informed decisions-Understanding the value proposition of data in healthcare and decision-making-The importance of training AI models with representative data to make recommendations effective and accurate-Achieving Better Outcomes by using healthcare data to improve health equityLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Are you making this mistake in healthcare sales?You're doing healthcare sales wrong. At least, a lot of people are making the same mistake in sales calls or demos. I talk to a lot of healthcare startups and tech companies who are trying to drive sales and awareness. But they're going about it all wrong.They're not doing anything crazy, like spamming people in the LinedIn Message Inbox (cause that's just annoying, am I right?) But, they're messing things up when they get into a discovery or demo call. They spend most, if not all, of the time with a prospective prospect "presenting" them with all of the value add, features, benefits, etc. But they glance over the MOST IMPORTANT part of these initial conversations: understanding the prospective customer's situation, context, and value-drivers..Many healthcare sales folks spend too much time trying to "convince" a prospect that their solution will solve their problems. But they never actually take the time to understand what problem the prospective customer actually wants to solve.  All sales, including healthcare sales, need to first start with a simple conversation.And that conversation has 2 goals:1) Understanding the prospect's situation & the nature of the problem they are seeking to solve2) Determining whether there's a good fit between your solution and their problem; and whether that fit warrants moving to the next stepSometimes, the answer is "no", and that's fine; but it's not fine to waste too much time getting to that ultimate conclusion. The goal in any initial demo or discovery conversation is to understand whether or not you should even continue the conversation. The faster you answer that question, the more efficient your sales process becomes. So stop presenting or trying to bombard prospects with your solution's benefits or features, and spend more time trying to actually understand the prospect's situation. Then see if there's a fit between that situation/problem and your solution.What we cover in this Episode:-The importance of positioning on lead generation-Understanding the role that specific value plays in a healthcare sales conversation-Driving sales with conversations-How to craft a value proposition for your healthcare business-Understanding the barriers to adoption of healthcare solutions-Aligning business models and incentives in the healthcare sales process-Achieving Better Outcomes by replacing demo presentations with value conversationsLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

How do discover and communicate Value in Healthcare Technology?In my work helping healthcare technology companies developing positioning strategies, the topic of value and return on investment for the buyer plays a major role. An effective positioning strategy involves answering the question "value to whom?". The challenge in that effort revolves around actually being able to define, describe, and communicate those value drivers. To effectively communicate value in healthcare technology, you must first uncover the specific value drivers your product or service addresses.So, this week, I sit down with Craig Solid from the Solid Research Group to discuss uncovering value in healthcare technology. Craig has been on the show before to discuss Return on Investment Studies and Value in Healthcare. This week, he's back to discuss value in healthcare technology.What we cover in this Episode:-Understanding the targeted buyer in a healthcare technology buying decision-Creating digital (or in-person) communities for healthcare providers-Using content and knowledge translation to start a healthcare business that doesn't require patient care-How to craft a value proposition for your healthcare business-Leveraging technology to start & scale a business that leverages your clinical skills-Achieving Better Outcomes by taking control of your healthcare career through business ownershipLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.comFull Show Notes: https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-131 If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

How do you start a healthcare business with no funding?Let's play a constrain-based game. You are a clinician and want to start a business that leverages your clinical degree/skills. It can be direct clinical care (like a practice), some sort of clinical innovation (like a device/invention) or an infrastructure play (like a software or professional services solution). Here's the constraint:  You can't get any outside funding for this venture. No loans & no investors; you're bootstrapping this thing. You are going to start a healthcare business with no funding.Here's what you want for this business:It can provide the same (ideally higher) income as you would earn as a staff clinician in a relatively short timeframe (you don't want to spend 5 years in side gig mode)It can scale without your direct input (you eventually don't want to be the one directly providing the service or solution)What we cover in this Episode:-Understanding some of the drivers that lead people to choose healthcare as a career-Creating digital (or in-person) communities for healthcare providers-Using content and knowledge translation to start a healthcare business that doesn't require patient care-How to craft a value proposition for your healthcare business-Leveraging technology to start & scale a business that leverages your clinical skills-Achieving Better Outcomes by taking control of your healthcare career through business ownershipLearn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.com If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

How can clinicians leverage technology and insights to go Direct to Employer and MSK Management in their practice?Learn More: https://rehabupracticesolutions.comPodcast: https://www.betteroutcomes.showGet the Book: https://amzn.to/3M2UZ6xBook a call with me: https://calendly.com/rehabu/discoveryConnect with Me: https://www.rafisalazar.comIt's no secret that healthcare organizations have been facing downward pricing pressure for years. Part of this comes from the fact that, in a fee for service model for reimbursement, the easiest lever for payers to pull when it comes to reducing the cost of healthcare is the price. Payers, in an attempt to control costs, resort to either limiting service coverage or paying providers less. As a result, many healthcare provider organizations have shifted from insurance-based models of care to direct to payer or direct to consumer business models, including cash-based practice and direct to employer and MSK management. They do this because they can bypass the low fee schedules of the insurance companies. The problem is that, at the end of the day, they're still stuck in the fee for service model of healthcare, which, as I describe in my book, incentivizes high volume, minimally acceptable quality care. That's where leveraging technology, data, and clinical content comes into play. Incorporating those into practice allows clinic owners and practices to tap into more value-based reimbursement and contracting.So, this week, I sit down with Zach Walston, PT, DPT from Second Door Health. (https://rehabupracticesolutions.com/better-outcomes-129) Zach was a guest on the podcast in the past, and now he's the head of clinical content and clinical strategy at Second Door Health.What we cover in this Episode:-The challenges of a fee for service healthcare model of reimbursement -Going direct to consumer in healthcare private practice-Using content and knowledge translation to increase patient engagement -The value proposition in a direct to employer model of MSK management -Leveraging technology to streamline workflows, increase patient engagement, and create a positive return on investment for payers-Achieving Better Outcomes by building a platform to enable clinicians to go direct to employer for MSK management  If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!

Ever Considered Exploring Executive Leadership in Healthcare as Part of Your Career?I recently ran a poll on LinkedIn about what people wanted to hear more about on the podcast. Business & Entrepreneurship/Career in Healthcare took the win the a large margin. So, I figured I'd begin including topics around career advancement, entrepreneurship, business leadership, maybe even healthcare operations & organizational management on more episodes. So, this week, I'm starting by sharing my experience going through the CEO recruiting, interview, and selection process for one of the boards I sit on. During dinner with the search consultant our board hired, they mentioned a quote in passing that stuck with me for the next several days.I asked what that executive search consultant saw in candidates that made them think that the candidate would be successful as a leader. The search consultant said, almost in passing, "Well, the quest of management is to make better what cannot be made perfect." I walked away from that conversation with a few insights and thoughts based on that quote. What we cover in this Episode:-The importance of strategically selecting healthcare leadership & executives-Challenges involving hiring & firing healthcare leaders & and executives-Tailoring your messaging to the stage in the hiring (buying) cycle -How the recruiting, interviewing, and hiring process mimics healthcare sales-Why peaking your mind and saying what you're thinking improves your chances in a competitive hiring process-A little bit about my history and work as a positioning strategist & healthcare consultant -Achieving Better Outcomes by building leadership skills & a strong leadership philosophy  If you'd like to learn more about Strata EMR & RCM and achieving a 99.99% reimbursement rate for your PT, OT, or SLP Clinic head over to stratapt.com and book a demo with their team!