Case Study: Per-Se
Needing a case study featuring its new consulting services product line, Per-Se Technologies asked Barbara Wilkes of Wilkes Communications to create a tagline (“Positioning practices for a profitable and healthy future”) for consulting services, interview an anesthesiology practice and Per-Se team members, and write a two-page case study.
(excerpted body copy) “The multispecialty clinic really didn’t understand anesthesiology,” states Dan Podeschi, M.D., and president of Valley Anesthesia, PC, in Roanoke, Virginia. His anesthesiology group of nine board-certified anesthesiologists, two of whom are also board-certified in chronic pain management, and five certified registered nurse anesthetists, wanted to resign from its 120-physician multispecialty clinic and form its own single-specialty anesthesiology group.
“Clinic administrators didn’t understand the intricacies and unique challenges facing an anesthesiology practice and how services are billed and collected as opposed to other physician groups,” Dr. Podeschi explains. “For instance, there is a unique coding system just for anesthesia. About two-thirds of every meeting was spent educating clinic administrators about how anesthesiology works.
“The multispecialty clinic previously did all of our practice management, including billing, collecting and administrative duties. So in 90 days, we had to completely form a private corporation, obtain new provider numbers, set up a compensation and benefit structure, and be ready to ‘go live’. None of us had any experience in setting up a practice, since most of our physicians came straight out of residency into the multispecialty clinic setting.
“However, we did have a clear set of goals that we wanted to achieve including:
- New, group-designed compensation and retirement plans
- An efficient, knowledgeable, low-cost and accurate billing and collection system, with reporting tied to collections
- Expertise in negotiating with third-party payers.”
Dr. Podeschi continues, “After interviewing several businesses that provide practice management and billing services, it was quite clear to us who to choose. With our task of starting a full-blown anesthesia practice in three months, Per-Se was the logical choice—and the only physician practice management company that tied it all together: group formation consulting services, billing and collections, and continued financial management support. Per-Se had experience with other anesthesiology groups and knew what we needed.”
(outhead) “Per-Se is what I call a ‘can do’ company. You ask them to take care of an issue, and they do it—without hesitation—and they do it right.” — Dan Podeschi, M.D., and president of Valley Anesthesia, PC
“Initially, we didn’t fully comprehend the complexity of a group formation. We were surprised by the amount of work, details and issues to be addressed in putting a practice together. Up front, Per-Se’s consultants outlined a comprehensive plan that included all of the steps required to form our corporation…
“So far, our new practice is running smoothly. We are very satisfied with the way it is set up. Per-Se’s continued involvement in day-to-day operations and the practice management information we are provided keep us current with the business side of our busy practice...”
Says Per-Se’s Consulting Services Senior Financial Manager Gary Keeling, “We partnered with the anesthesiologists to establish the legal, financial and operational frameworks they needed to progress and flourish as a group practice and prosper in their new relationship with the hospital.”
“Per-Se is unique in that our consulting team members are well versed in anesthesiology practice management issues,” says Jill Thompson, Per-Se’s vice president of consulting services. “We believe that, having used Per-Se’s more encompassing, anesthesiology-focused package of services, the anesthesiologists in Valley Anesthesia will be significantly more satisfied—personally and financially—for years to come.”