Practice administrators: Behind the scenes
Facts at your fingertips
By Emily Margosian, assistant editor, December 1, 2020
In 2020, dermatology is solidly a team effort. The specialty’s move toward larger group settings has been well-documented — currently more than half of dermatologists are in group practice, with as many as seven in 10 dermatologists practicing in a group setting when including academic medicine (Flip back to August’s Facts at your Fingertips for more on key specialty shifts).
These changes have produced the rise of a new member in the dermatology team: the practice manager. According to 2019 AAD survey data, the average practice administrator is responsible for a wide variety of roles contributing to the day-to-day and long-term operations of dermatology practices. Eight in 10 practice managers are managing staff, the facility, and patient satisfaction. Up to 6 in 10 managers have major financial responsibilities including payroll, budget management, negotiating insurance contracts, and MIPS. However, the majority of managers are not involved in patient-level transactions such as coding or insurance denials.
For more on the primary responsibilities of dermatology practice managers, see the graphic below.
