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BUSINESS
patient or a one-time patient. Train that person well. Finding a the same period for last year and do the financial statements
great office manager is absolutely critical to your success. Engage clearly show you the dollars that go to the bottom line for your
an experienced medical consultant to help you find that manager. benefit, after all expenses? Are your patient-receivable balances in-
creasing or decreasing, and why? Ask your CPA to help you and
• Consider an office retreat with your key people. Regroup and as- request a statement of cash flow.
sess everything — away from the office. Take time to prepare for
the retreat with an experienced facilitator. • Reassess your choice of advisors. Do you have an experienced
CPA, medical consultant, banker and attorney?
• Clarify stakeholder’s roles. Have all agreements with key employ-
ees and fellow owners of the practice clearly written and executed, • Review your choice of taxable entity for IRS reporting purposes.
including buy-sell decisions, employment terms and disability in- Often, an “S” corporation is the most favorable choice, especially
surance. with multiple providers
• Prevent insider theft and fraud. Embezzlement is very high in med- • Reexamine the practice’s retirement plan status. Is the retirement
ical practices. Reassess your internal controls and the segregation of plan designed to benefit the key employees more so than others?
cash handling duties. Have the bank statements come to your home Certain types of retirement plans can accomplish this.
first and scan the contents each month before giving them to the
bookkeeper. Let all your employees know that you are taking an ac- Jim Rice, CPA is a shareholder at Sol Schwartz & As-
tive role in this area. Consider engaging your CPA or medical con- sociates, P.C. (jprice@ssacpa.com). He has 39 years of ex-
sultant to review your controls if you strongly suspect a problem. perience in public accounting. In addition to providing
business consultation, financial planning and various
• Understand your financial statements. Do you know how to in- other accounting services, Jim specializes in income tax planning and con-
terpret the medical practice’s financial data, including the financial sultation. He works with a high concentration of physician practices and
statements? Do you get timely financial statements and do you high net worth individuals. Contact Jim at (210) 384-8000 Ext. 112.
review them timely? Are the financial statements comparable to
visit us at www.bcms.org 27
