VIEWPOINT

BUILD A BANK OF MEDICAL TIPS

THIS MONTH, WE DEDICATE “OM” TO MEDICAL EYE CARE. IT DOESN’T END THERE

JIM THOMAS
Editorial Director

EACH MONTH, “OM” presents its share of medical eye care content, but in February, we devote most of our pages to the subject. This year is no exception. I invite you to turn to the “Table of Contents” to get the lineup from what has become one of our most popular issues.

I also invite you to take a broader look at medical eye care through our back issues at optometricmanagement.com. Here, you’ll find a wide-ranging resource for medical tips and advice. A complete index of the content would run on for pages, but here are a few examples that can serve as an introduction:

• Avoid these common medical mistakes: failing to educate staff, underutilizing technology, not providing patient education, failure to schedule follow-up visits and using the wrong codes. — Mile Brujic, O.D., February 2013, tinyurl.com/OMFebBrujic.

• Tip No. 10 (of 10) for building a medical practice: analyze your business. To determine your practice’s success with medical eye care, “use EHR to measure and track medically related analytics.” — Josh Johnston, O.D., F.A.A.O., February 2015, tinyurl.com/OMFebJohnston.

• One of five steps in establishing the dry eye disease office visit: Supply patients with a personalized treatment summary. Included is a sample summary sheet that lists easy-to-follow instructions, which can be personalized for each patient. — Melanie J. Denton, O.D., F.A.A.O., February 2013, tinyurl.com/OMFebDenton.

• One of 10 strategies to developing a retina niche: build a clinical network. “Foster an interdisciplinary relationship with referring physicians. . . and other health care providers.” — Sherrol A. Reynolds, O.D., F.A.A.O., February 2015, tinyurl.com/OMFebReynolds.

A FEW MORE TIPS

Let me also recommend Dr. Neil Gailmard’s “Management Tip of the Week” e-newsletter (visit optometricmanagement.com/newsletters) and its archive. Dr. Gailmard provides a wealth of practical practice information, including his insights into medical eye care.

We also invite you to join us on Facebook (Optometric Management magazine) and Twitter (@OptoManagement) to continue the discussion of medical eye care and other issues that impact your practice. OM