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Practice Management

Practice Consulting
With practice management experience, knowledge of best practices, and access to TMA's tools and resources, a TMA consultant can provide customized solutions specific to your practice.

Practice Management Distance Learning Center
Includes TMA practice management publications, home studies, and Web-based educational activities.

Practice Management Seminars
TMA's Office of Conference Management develops educational seminars and publications that focus on the practice and risk management needs of members and their staff.

FAQs  
Answers to the practice management questions most commonly asked of TMA

E-Tips
Practical tips to help manage your practice

Newcomers to Texas
Visit your one stop location to get information on the licensure process, physician demographics, credentialing application, establishing your practice, state and federal agencies, resources for your practice and much more.

Health Care Payment Plans
Participation in health care payment plan contracts requires credentialing, a process that includes verifying a physician's education, licensure status, medical liability insurance status, and hospital privileges. Provider contract types include HMO, PPO, Medicare and Medicaid, IPA, PHO. 

Health Information Technology
To support Texas physicians' adoption of HIT, TMA will continue to act as a trusted advisor to our member physicians by providing education, unbiased advice, resources and consulting services while, encouraging physicians to play an integral role in the development of interoperable community based health information exchanges.

Human Resources
The human resource function of a practice is critical to its success. Effective policies and procedures that are reviewed on a regular basis can ensure a smooth-running, low-turnover, and legally compliant office.

Legal and Regulatory
Health care payment plan contracts, medical records retention, advance directives, and delegation of duties are just a few of the legal issues a physician faces every day. Regulatory topics that affect a physician include HIPAA, ERISA, CLIA, and EMTALA.

Marketing a Practice
Successful marketing plans are long-term investments supported by a sufficient budget and a commitment to continue the plan, even though results often are not immediately visible. Developing specific strategies based on research will provide your practice with a more targeted and effective marketing plan.

Medicaid
Texas physicians recognize the need to assure that Medicaid be more effective, efficient, and accountable. At the same time, Medicaid is an essential element of Texas’ economic development. Get the latest information on the National Provider Identifier (NPI), Guidelines for Implementing the Deficit Reduction Act (DRA), payment information and more.

Medicare
Stay abreast of the Medicare physician fee updates, how to avoid the top 10 Medicare billing errors, physician relations, how to contact Medicare with general questions and receive quick answers, as well as other important Medicare information.

Reimbursement
Billing and collections is a process, not a self-contained task, that is a part of your practice’s overall revenue cycle. It begins with efficient appointment scheduling and ends with payment for billed charges. By attending carefully to each step of the billing and collections process, you can eliminate problems that may cause your practice to lose money. And, do you fully understand coding and how documentation affects coding and billing? Correct coding makes sure you are reimbursed appropriately for your services. Inaccurate coding can shortchange you, bog down your billing process, or even trigger an audit.

Risk Management
Today's clinical practice places extraordinary demands on physicians. In a time-pressured setting, physicians deal with patient noncompliance, health insurance obstacles, and regulatory requirements. With the continual threat of legal action, how can physicians, nurses, and support staff deal effectively with these challenges and ensure that patients are safe?

Setting Up or Closing a Practice
Are you aware that you need to start a year out to set up a practice? Whether starting out fresh from a residency program or starting over in an independent practice, a myriad of tasks and important decisions awaits you. Building a medical practice requires a concerted effort and careful planning.

Supplies and Equipment
Medical supplies and equipment are available through a number of sources. You can purchase them directly through sales reps, or through mail order catalogs or Internet sites.

Get Connected

Explore the new online networks, the TMA Reimbursement Community and Office Technologies Community, at www.tmacommunities.org to exchange ideas and information with other physicians, practice managers, and staff.

Last Published: 10/27/2009