Five silent revenue drains and ways to plug them

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Running a veterinary hospital involves many moving parts, and seemingly minor issues can add up over time. Forgetting to include a laboratory test on the invoice, dealing with yet another no-show, or having clients who don’t follow treatment plans are common occurrences often viewed as routine in operations. However, these are silent revenue drains that cumulatively deplete the earning potential of your hospital, whether through the loss of hard-earned income from missed charges, overspending on outdated software, or missing out on profit opportunities due to poor client adherence and inefficient workflows.

In today’s economy, where every dollar counts and staff time is more valuable than ever, these hidden losses can significantly affect your bottom line. Fortunately, technology offers solutions to plug these leaks and maximize profits, ensuring your practice thrives in a competitive landscape.

Missed charges

These are not to be taken lightly in veterinary medicine. Missed charges are silent revenue leaks, often unnoticed in the hustle of daily operations. Whether it’s errors in coding and billing entries; inaccuracies in bundling and discounting; or the omission of services, products, or additional fees on the invoice, these missed opportunities can add up to ​​10% of missed revenue per year.¹ 

The most common culprits of missed charges often stem from human error. However, inefficient processes or inadequate documentation play a significant role in this silent revenue drain. The solution requires robust documentation, coding, billing, revenue cycle management processes, and ongoing staff training. It also requires implementing quality assurance measures to minimize errors and optimize revenue capture. Automating through technology is the optimal solution. Here are some effective ways to enhance billing accuracy.

• Integrate services and billing with records: By linking clinical services directly with the billing system, every service entered into the patient record will be immediately reflected on the invoice. For example, Digitail Secure Payments integrates with an onsite terminal. It automatically sends the correct invoice amount to the machine, eliminating manual data entry mistakes and ensuring an error-free billing process. Additionally, having clients’ credit cards on file helps secure more timely payments and manage cash flow, enhancing convenience.
• Integrate practice information management software with diagnostic services: Eliminating delays in updating lab results minimizes the risk of missed charges associated with diagnostic services. Whether you conduct lab work in-house or outsource it, ensure it synchronizes with patient records and billing. Check if such integration exists with your clinic’s practice information management software (PIMS) and activate it. Ask the PIMS provider to introduce this integration if it doesn’t exist.
• Create service and procedure templates: Just as you create standard operating procedures to streamline processes and boost consistency, having predefined treatment plans achieves the same outcome. Depending on the appointment type, such as a wellness check or surgery, these templates can suggest the typical products and services associated with the procedure and automatically create an invoice. This will expedite the billing process and minimize the chance of overlooking billable items.
• Generate audit trails and reporting: Generate regular reports and audit trails from your PIMS to review billing practices systematically. Analyzing these reports can unveil patterns of missed charges and highlight areas for improvement. This data-driven approach allows teams to address discrepancies promptly, preventing further revenue leakage.
• Implement voice-to-text transcription for documentation accuracy: Automating the record-keeping process will ensure all services are correctly recorded for billing purposes. With the development of artificial intelligence (AI), voice-to-text capabilities have become even more advanced.

Lack of adherence

Imagine a situation where a client has a sudden change of plans and needs to reschedule their appointment. It’s after hours, and the hospital is closed. With no online booking option, you end up with yet another no-show.

A lack of client adherence can result in lost revenue by directly impacting appointment attendance, preventive care, treatment plan completion, and client loyalty. In today’s fast-paced world, retaining business requires being readily accessible and convenient for pet owners, which means employing diverse communication methods. From emails to text messaging to in-app notifications, technology can improve client adherence without creating more work for the veterinary healthcare team.

• Automatic reminders: Besides reducing no-show rates and improving appointment use, reminders can improve adherence to recommended treatments, vaccine boosters, dental cleaning, and other preventive care that busy pet owners may overlook. Your staff has enough on their plates without spending time printing off reminder lists, sending reminder notices in between seeing patients, and playing phone tag with clients. The system must work for your staff by sending scheduled reminders and prompting them about possible opportunities to improve pet care when they need it.
• Provide online booking: Go beyond a simple tab on your website to schedule an appointment. Real-time online booking offers unparalleled convenience and efficiency. Pet owners can schedule appointments seamlessly, anytime and anywhere, eliminating the hassle of phone calls. This system allows for immediate confirmation of appointments, reduces on-hold wait times, and frees up staff to tend to urgent matters in the practice.
• Use texting and client apps: Text messages and apps give clients convenient and instant access to critical information and services. Through text messages, clients can receive appointment reminders, medication alerts, and updates on their pet’s health status, ensuring they stay informed and organized. Apps offer additional benefits, such as access to medical records, appointment scheduling, and the ability to communicate directly with the veterinary healthcare team. These digital tools enhance communication, streamline processes, and ultimately contribute to better pet care management, empowering clients to stay actively involved in their pet’s well-being.

Inefficient processes

Think of every step of the patient journey, from booking an appointment to patient intake, treatment, and post visit communication. Inefficient processes can manifest in various forms, from administrative tasks to clinical procedures, draining precious time and resources from staff and clients. Modern technology can optimize or automate each of these steps, reducing wait times, alleviating the workload for your team, and increasing the hospital throughput.

• Streamline registration and record management: Collecting patient information and history and getting consent forms signed in advance saves time. Additionally, syncing refills with follow-up appointments helps mitigate revenue drains due to lack of adherence.
• Monitor the fill rate: Using tools that display each doctor’s availability percentage and booking rate is essential for efficient time management. Monitoring the fill rate ensures the team’s time is used most effectively, helping to balance the schedule and avoid overbooking or underutilizing staff. Schedule optimization ensures the right appointments are booked at the right times, promoting a smooth internal workflow.
• Improve medical record documentation: Using voice-to-text transcription to update medical records during appointments saves doctors time doing paperwork after hours––up to 8 minutes per subjective, objective, assessment, and plan (SOAP) note, which, for a 5-doctor hospital, can translate to 50 hours saved per week.² Additionally, creating predefined lists of diagnoses and corresponding recommendations can save time by automating the creation of some of the SOAP notes and discharge instructions.
• Streamline client communication: Using AI to generate personalized recommendations, discharge notes, and educational materials frees up the staff to spend time talking to the pet parent.

Optimizing patient journeys will free up the clinical team to see more patients or improve their work-life balance, both of which will positively impact your hospital’s revenue.

Limited payment options

Pet owners are more inclined to seek veterinary care if they have the flexibility to pay in installments. Offering alternative payment options can determine whether clients accept the recommended treatment plan or can afford care at all.

• Integrate with third-party lenders: Companies such as CareCredit can integrate with your PIMS to provide a seamless process for clients to finance pet care. Having the 2 systems connected allows the company to process applications instantly and handle payments in the PIMS, enhancing convenience for clients and veterinary staff.
• Institute a clinic-backed payment plan: Even under high default rates, the revenue benefits from offering clinic-backed payment plans outweigh the labor costs and could bring higher profitability to clinics while increasing access to care for clients and patients, according to findings from a recent study published in JAVMA.³ If you are hesitant to provide your own payment plans, consider partnering with VetBilling––an external platform that handles payments and collections on behalf of hospitals for a comparatively small fee. Use the platform to manage payment plans, pet savings accounts, wellness/subscription plans, and pay-in-advance plans.
• Educate clients: Using a pet parent app can be handy for promoting available payment options, allowing the client time to digest the information from the comfort of their home.

Relieving the financial burden of veterinary expenses will result in better patient outcomes, more accessible care, and improved hospital financial performance.

Using legacy software

The hospital’s PIMS may be its own worst enemy––legacy systems can eat away at your budget, creating inefficiencies and hindering growth. ​​Approximately 65% of veterinary practices still use on-premises servers that require ongoing maintenance and electricity costs, hardware upgrades, and manual backups.⁴ 

A server-based PIMS updates only once a year, requiring all systems and computers to be shut down during this process. In contrast, cloud-based PIMS updates its software and features in the background every 14 days without any interference to hospital operations. However, the actual financial burden of server-based PIMS becomes apparent when you consider the number of additional services you need to invest in: third-party online appointment scheduling, reminders, texting, and other essential capabilities for modern pet care.

The limitations of outdated software may become more apparent if you decide to expand to additional locations, offer remote work opportunities for your team, or introduce virtual care services.

• Upgrade to a cloud-based system: As a software-as-a-service, cloud-based PIMS requires only a monthly payment to the provider, who is responsible for maintaining and updating the system. Choosing an all-in-one software can also ensure all core functionalities are already built-in, contributing to more seamless workflows. Cloud software is also inherently more flexible and can swiftly roll out new features to meet the evolving needs of veterinary professionals and their patients.

Technology is the future

Technology is developing in leaps and bounds and can be the answer to more profitability, a better experience for staff, and improved patient care. AI alone is revolutionizing the daily routines of veterinary practices, automating tasks such as appointment scheduling, record-keeping, and even diagnostics, which enhances efficiency and accuracy. Many veterinary hospitals say that positive firsthand experience motivates them to try new tools––so don’t hesitate to explore what is available. Embracing advanced technologies not only addresses the silent revenue drains but also positions your practice at the forefront of veterinary medicine, ensuring sustainable growth and excellence in patient care.

Janine Malloy, the head of customer success at Digitail, is a workflow expert with 25 years of experience in veterinary medicine and practice management, including general practice, specialty, emergency, university, and corporate environments. Fluent in multiple languages, she excels in understanding and responding to the evolving needs of veterinary businesses, identifying areas for improvement, and addressing inefficiencies. She is also a passionate advocate for veterinary work-life balance and a member of Not One More Vet, an organization dedicated to transforming veterinary practices for a brighter future.

References

1. Galvin J. Maybe money does grow on trees. American Animal Hospital Association. September 18, 2023. Accessed July 2, 2024.https://www.aaha.org/newstat/publications/maybe-money-does-grow-on-trees.
2. Danylenko G. How Paumanok Veterinary Hospital harnessed AI to reclaim 50 hours per week. April 17, 2024. Accessed July 2, 2024. https://digitail.com/blog/how-paumanok-veterinary-hospital-harnessed-ai-to-reclaim-50-hours-per-week/
3. Neill CL, Roberts J, Colon J, Zhang P. What are the risks of clinic-backed payment plans? JAm Vet Med Assoc. 2023;262(3):426-431. doi:10.2460/javma.23.07.0421
4. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc investor day. IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. August 10, 2023. Accessed July 8, 2024. https://www.idexx.com/media/filer_public/ba/04/ba049de2-a3df-4ae7-8007-739f88c98dc0/2023-08-10-investor-day.pdf