The strain of the COVID-19 pandemic has become more immediately visible to the healthcare field as a whole – but especially so to smaller practices and solo providers who are working to navigate complex labor challenges and financial concerns. The trends we’re seeing have left many wondering what to expect in the 2022-2023 transition and debating if current ways of payment and financial management suit the current dynamic landscape we’re dealing with.
Below, we’re addressing the key points of financial concern in healthcare, such as cashflow variation, workforce shortages and sustainable payment structures across small- and large-scale enterprises.
The continuous nature of COVID-19 had given smaller and solo practices a pre-set standard of cash flow. Patients came at a steady influx, seeking more convenient and low-cost care options to protect their financial and physical health experience. The most competitive practices across scale were those that quickly adapted and swapped to current healthcare technology tools – such as virtual visits, patient-forward EMRs and other related resources.
The future is uncertain for smaller or solo operations. At the moment, many report greater variation in profits due to inflation, dynamic patient inflow and the growth of larger hospitals and centers.
While this may come as no surprise, it’s important to acknowledge the impact that inflation will have across the healthcare field. Planning ahead from now and scaling the business expenses accordingly will be a vital step to secure your business’s future success – currently and after the break in inflation.
Burnout, walkouts and overall clinical workforce crises have been hot topics of discussion in the 2022 healthcare landscape. Strategies to address these concerns will need to take place on both an organizational and practice-wide level, with supervisors and planners remaining flexible in their staffing realities and protocols.
Moving toward a value and incentive-based system has been temporarily helpful for some in alleviating staffing management crises, but smaller practices may find it more difficult to scale competitively due to limited resources and rising expectations of pay.
Solidify your financial wellness strategy with the team at Zotec
Zotec offers a compassionate patient platform and revenue cycle management (RCM) services that are designed to empower your practice to reach its next level of success. For more information, please visit our website. We look forward to serving you.
