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Top Revenue Cycle Outsourcing Myths—Exposed

In this 5-part blog series, we explore the most common myths around working with a partner for revenue cycle management—and offer practical tips for gaining the most from your investment. Read our first post here, addressing why seamless integration of multiple solutions isn’t impossible.

RCM Outsourcing Myth No. 2: Lack of Communication Is Inevitable

With numerous competing priorities in today’s evolving healthcare landscape, many organizations are turning to outside support for revenue cycle management (RCM). Demand for RCM outsourcing is especially increasing among physician practices as they seek to meet the requirements of MACRA and other value-based payment programs.Often times, however, organizations end up feeling as though they’ve lost critical insight into one of their most important assets—their finances. When practice leaders and RCM vendors don’t communicate effectively, both sides miss key opportunities to become true partners in boosting revenue cycle performance.Establishing a collaborative partnership requires both parties to truly work hand-in-hand from the start of the relationship. Here are three keys to success:

  • Agree upon goals. Before entering into an RCM partnership, work with the vendor to review your practice’s revenue cycle processes holistically—including both front- and back-end functions. Determine the best place to focus your outsourcing efforts and create a clear vision for what success will look like, such as a reduced number of coding errors or lower denial rates. It’s also important to establish a timeframe by which key metrics will be achieved.
  • Set expectations for communication. Enter the relationship with a team mindset—and expect the same from your RCM partner. Learn which representatives will be your primary points of contact, and work together to determine a cadence for communication before the contract is signed.
  • Seek visibility into performance. Strategic partners should provide real-time access to RCM data that provides a high degree of transparency into the progress made toward the practice’s goals. This will allow your team to work side-by-side with your vendor to complement their efforts and quickly address issues or opportunities that surface to enhance revenue overall.

Real RCM Partnership Success

Following unsuccessful partnerships with previous RCM vendors, Reclaim Physicians Medical Group, a multidisciplinary, regional physician group based in Dallas-Fort Worth, turned to Pulse for revenue cycle outsourcing services. While the practice was in need of a financial jumpstart, the level of expertise and collaboration Pulse brought to Reclaim quickly became apparent to staff and leaders. Pulse introduced staff to best-practices that helped to optimize workflows and provided real-time access to RCM data, generating excitement around the progress Reclaim made while also empowering staff to pinpoint opportunities for improvement and act upon them quickly.The next post in this series will debunk the next biggest myth in RCM outsourcing:RCM support is only for billing functions.

Talk to Us

Finding the right partner for RCM outsourcing is critical to optimizing revenue cycle performance. To learn more about how Pulse can support revenue cycle services for your practice, visit here.