Health Care Quality Special Reports

After Layoff From Multispecialty Group, Rheumatologist Finds Success in Solo Practice July 2010 Practice Makeover For a dozen years, rheumatologist Eileen Schwartz, MD, was a member of a large multispecialty medical group in Burbank, Calif. But then in December 2008, the practice was forced to lay her off. For many physicians, such a change might have been a devastating blow. Rather than view her circumstances as a setback, Schwartz considered the lay off to be an opportunity. And, now more than 18 months later, she is running her own successful solo practice near her home in Burbank, and experiencing more professional satisfaction than at any time in her career. Her solo practice is profitable and she has signed a contract with the same group that had to lay her off in 2008. Crisis or Opportunity? Although her current practice is satisfying, getting to this point was a challenge for many reasons. In the multispecialty group, for example, she had never used an electronic health record (EHR) system. When setting up a solo practice, she soon realized that such a system would be required. Also, she had only her own limited savings with which to get started, and with no patients enrolled at the outset, she was unwilling to borrow money. Despite the uncertainty, she set a goal to be practicing within 90 days. By January 2009, she was exploring options and speaking with colleagues about how to establish a solo practice successfully. Many told her that given her stellar reputation and her training in a specialty that was in demand, her patients would follow, as would contracts with health plans and independent practice associations (IPAs). Following this advice, she took her savings, hired an assistant from her former practice, and became a solo practitioner. Getting Connected Interestingly, it was her ability to find and use an EHR and billing .... You must sign-in to read complete article. If you are not registered click here. Username: Forgot it? Password: Financial support for this Website is provided by Premier Healthcare Resource.

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