Eyeworld

March 2018 • Ophthalmology Business 23 the structure and staff in place to set a new program up for success. Do we have buy-in from our physician team? Can we deliver a consistent experience to our patients with a new program, across all locations and specialties? We develop a pro forma to establish predictable revenues and gauge the opportunity from the perspective of whether the hard/soft costs and projected returns make a good business case," he said. One of the most natural fits, especially given Minnesota Eye's inte- gration of optometric staff, was estab- lishing an optical shop. Dr. Lindstrom said after owning an ambulatory surgery center and having employee doctors, having an optical shop can be a meaningful point of revenue. Another adjunct offered by Minne- sota Eye is aesthetic plastic surgery innovate in the ophthalmic space, Mr. Wilde said, adding that this value goes back to the practice's founder, Richard Lindstrom, MD. "We were founded on the princi- ple of working closely with referring providers and trying to offer services that they couldn't necessarily offer, not taking patients from people, but supplementing the referring partners' needs," Mr. Wilde said, adding later, "We think that if you do these things and do them right, everyone can be a winner, starting with the patient." First and foremost, when Min- nesota Eye looks at bringing new sup- plementary services into its ophthal- mic practice, it assesses its possible synergy with the practice's core set of offerings, Mr. Wilde said. "Is it related or connected to our mission and vision for the organiza- tion? We look at whether we have A look at one practice's use of adjunctive services to enhance patient convenience and bring in more revenue P atient expectations coupled with reduced reimbursement rates have some ophthal- mic practices consid- ering the addition of complementary adjunct services that can generate positive revenue while meeting pa- tient needs. Minnesota Eye Consultants is one such practice that's not afraid to bring on new but relevant services. From an optical shop to a website for over-the-counter items, the practice with several offices in the Minneapo- lis metropolitan area has always put a focus on "being on the front edge of things," said Brent Wilde, president of Minnesota Eye Consultants. "In a service industry like eye care (and healthcare in general), busi- nesses cannot expect to lead a market by only providing a single core offering to the public. Attracting and retaining today's patients demands a fundamentally different approach," Mr. Wilde said. "Patient expectations are higher than ever, and competi- tion is greater than ever. People want to consolidate their errands, their outings, their appointments. The quality surgical and medical care pro- vided to patients is still at the center of everything we do at Minnesota Eye, but the convenience of offering enhancement services is where the difference is made in meeting and of- ten exceeding patient expectations." It has always been in the cul- ture of Minnesota Eye to lead and Supplementary services that can net profits by Liz Hillman, Ophthalmology Business Staff Writer continued on page 24

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