Empowering Independent Practices to Flourish

Physicians are facing a multitude of challenges navigating the healthcare regulatory and reimbursement landscape, while incorporating new technology into their daily workflow, and managing an increasing administrative burden. The result is that 62% of surveyed physicians are pessimistic about the future of medicine, 78% of surveyed physicians sometimes, often, or always experience feelings of burnout; and 49% of surveyed physicians would not recommend medicine as a career to their children according to a recent survey conducted by the Physicians Foundation.¹ In another recent survey, conducted by Medical Economics, 79% of physicians named paperwork and administrative burden as the top challenge they experience in practice and what is ruining medicine for them.²

These challenges are arguably compounded for physicians practicing independently. One signal is the continued disappearance of independent practices, with only 31% of physicians identifying themselves as independent practice owners or partners in 2018, down from 48.5% in 2012, according to the Physicians Foundation. This trend is an unhealthy sign for our healthcare system when 57.5% of surveyed physicians don’t agree that hospital employment of physicians is likely to enhance quality of care and decrease costs, employed physicians work more hours yet see fewer patients than practice owners, and 46% of surveyed physicians indicate relations between physicians and hospitals are somewhat or mostly negative according to the recent Physicians Foundation survey. We need more independent practices, not fewer.

As the #1 cloud-based EHR for independent practices, we at Practice Fusion are passionate about partnering with independent practices and empowering them to succeed. With over a decade of experience, as a pioneer, in advancing cloud-based EHR technology, along with the third largest market share in the predominantly independent 1 to 3 provider space according to IQVIA’s 2018 report, we are leveraging our experience and market authority to empower entrepreneurial physicians and healthcare providers to succeed despite the market forces working against them.³

We seek to align our efforts to the needs of independent practices by first listening to our vast community, advocating for them from our positions of influence, investing in areas that make a positive impact on their daily practice needs, and through steadfast innovation, ensuring that our community is receiving the best value from our partnership and staying on the leading edge of medicine.

At Practice Fusion, we honor the impact that thousands of independent practices make on millions of people’s lives. We understand that independent practices are facing a multitude of challenges that for many are an existential threat, and that is why we are committed to strengthening the partnership we have with the thousands of independent practices in the Practice Fusion community and with those that are joining every day. Together we can confidently navigate the future and get back to what many physicians find most satisfying about medical practice, the patient and physician relationship.

1. 2018 Survey of America’s Physicians - The Physicians Foundation
2. What’s ruining medicine for physicians: Paperwork and administrative burdens - Medical Economics
3. IQVIA Market Insight Report: EHR Software Adoption - IQVIA
4. EHR Association Response to HHS Draft Strategy on Reducing Regulatory and Administrative Burden - Electronic Health Record Association