Running a Modern Solo Practice - Ophthalmology

In his early days as an associate in New York, Dr. Vaidya collaborated with a team of doctors working in offices scattered throughout the boroughs. At that time, all patient records were kept in physical form. This meant that Dr. Vaidya and his staff had to constantly plan ahead to make sure that they retrieved patients’ charts from the clinic where they were filed before a visit. This wasn’t just inconvenient, it was a confidentiality risk and would result in uninformed care decisions when last minute visits meant no access to a patient’s prior history.

When Dr. Vaidya decided to start his own practice, he knew what to avoid in order to run an efficient practice that provided high quality care. Consequently, he chose to take ownership over all operations, from patient interaction to billing. In pursuit of setting up an independent ophthalmology practice, Dr. Vaidya reached out to an ophthalmologist who ran a blog about starting one’s own practice. He learned from that meeting that by getting the right practice management EHR and billing platform that fit his requirements, everything would fall into place.

When Dr. Vaidya decided to start his own practice, he knew what to avoid in order to run an efficient practice that provided high quality care. Consequently, he chose to take ownership over all operations, from patient interaction to billing. In pursuit of setting up an independent ophthalmology practice, Dr. Vaidya reached out to an ophthalmologist who ran a blog about starting one’s own practice. He learned from that meeting that by getting the right practice management EHR and billing platform that fit his requirements, everything would fall into place.

Now, with DrChrono running all his practice’s administrative needs, Dr. Vaidya focuses on one patient at a time. He sees 15-20 patients a day, averaging around 20 minutes a visit. Dr.Vaidya estimates that he spends about five minutes of each consultation on his iPad charting and chatting with patients. His patients agree that they feel heard and cared for and that they appreciate his deft use of technology.

With online check-in, digital eligibility checks, and a cloud-based EHR, neither Dr. Vaidya nor his patients’ time is wasted. This keeps patients coming back. Even with back to back patient visits, technicians can complete necessary tests, upload the results to DrChrono, and send them straight to Dr. Vaidya’s iPad so that he has all the information he needs as soon as the visit begins.

Dr. Vaidyas’ workflow clearly demonstrates his passion for technology. He uses iPads at check-in. His digital ophthalmology tools store information securely in the DrChrono EHR. In the exam room, Apple TVs project patient information, facilitate education, and even conduct vision tests. These steps have put Dr. Vaidya ahead of the competition. He says the Apple hardware coupled with DrChrono EHR & billing software “makes it almost like child’s play, quick and easy, despite seeing around 20 patients a day.”

Billing has proven to be the area in which DrChrono has provided Dr. Vaidya’s practice the most value. If it weren’t for DrChrono, he would have to pay someone $60,000 a year to manage billing for the practice.

Instead of hoping to get paid, he can watch individual claims get paid. The live claims feed allows him to view any claim status in real time and immediately follow up on denials or rejections. ERAs post into his electronic funds transfer so he never has to manually post EOBs.

Dr. Vaidya has found that DrChrono offers comparative tools to ophthalmology-specific software. One feature he often uses is DrChrono’s draw tool. He can draw on a template retina in various colors, giving additional insight into a patient’s condition. This allows him to conduct and bill for extended ophthalmoscopies without carrying additional charting supplies. “If I do a lot of typing,” Dr. Vaidya says, “I have failed at customizing my template. [DrChrono] makes the repetitive things a lot easier.”

Using DrChrono’s text replacement, automation, and customizable templates, Dr. Vaidya is able to retrieve and input all the information he needs without wasting doctor-patient time. He can pull up his preferred prescriptions prepopulated with instructions, saving him time and assuring accuracy. And he can do this on any device. He once helped a patient with an emergency refill while watching a little league game.

Dr. Vaidya is happy these numbers do not apply to him or his practice with him spending on average just 30 minutes after the clinic hours. He spends the vast majority of his time in the room with patients, knowing that DrChrono will handle the rest. Technology and quality patient care are central to the success of Dr. Vaidya’s practice. With DrChrono’s powerful tools, Dr. Vaidya took control of his revenue and focused on what really mattered: patient health.

Technology and quality patient care are central to the success of Dr. Vaidya’s practice. With DrChrono’s powerful tools, Dr. Vaidya took control of his revenue and focused on what really mattered: patient health.