With a quarter of small medical practices eying closure and even large hospital-owned practices losing hundreds of thousands of dollars per year, the need for physicians to improve their business acumen is stronger than ever.
As more docs seek out advanced business degreees, emerging programs, such as the medical MBA offered by Kelley School of Business in Indianapolis, are taking the trend one step further by creating a curriculum specifically for physicians practicing in today's fast-evolving healthcare industry.
Kelley's Business of Medicine MBA is a nod to the "pivotal role" physician leaders will play in an "industry grappling with unprecedented upheaval," according to an announcement. "Challenges span the institutional spectrum, including implementing the Affordable Care Act, reducing costs while improving patient outcomes, enabling innovation under cost pressures and managing the migration of private practices into larger medical networks."
This movement may also give way to a new arena of potential business opportunities for nonphysicians in medical office management, according to a post from Business News Daily.
"If you've ever worked as an administrator, secretary or assistant, then you might have all the expertise you need to help save private practice," the author writes. "Your business could help doctors in this endeavor by providing oversight to medical offices. Your services, which might include billing, hiring and managing, would help private practices trim the fat and stay competitive with their big-box counterparts."
With the stakes higher than ever, practices will be challenged to determine the best and most cost-effective ways to enhance their team members' skill sets and/or bring in outside expertise.
To learn more:
- read the post from Business News Daily
- see the announcement from Kelley School of Business