Kristie Perry

How to ensure that conflicts won't destroy your group, When a patient is covered by an HMO and an indemnity plan, Getting Uncle Sam to help you treat staffers to lunch, Is there ever a good reason to sidestep insurance rules? A parachute for workers you must layoff, Medicare rules on supervising nonphysician providers, When a patient of means acts like a deadbeat, Accommodating patients who are self-conscious about their weight, Should you close your practice to a retiring doctor's patients?, Whether to retain an associate who turns down your partnership offer

A bonus formula that pleases everyone; Office hours for a new practice; Should patients be privy to your mission statement; Attracting stellar staffers in a tight labor market; The costs of processing paperwork for patients; Whether to curb your generosity toward colleagues; Why workplace policies need to be in writing; Whether discounts lead to improved collections; When a partner quits obstetrics.

Tips on shopping for office space; Can the IRS hep you make a deadbeat pay?; Giving your staff a piece of the action; Whether to borrow marketing techniques from the supermarket; When a health plan wants a refund of old overpayments; Make sure a hospital will deliver on its promise; How to respond to a software theft; Can you charge insurers more for copying patients' charts?

Performance evaluations; Unloading bad debt; How to find a community where practice will flourish; Can you put brakes on your Medicaid caseload; How to give a patient his walking papers; When your employer breaks the labor laws; Forecasting value of your practice; Staff bonus; Whether to tell patients you're switching groups.

Practice Management Q & A