R Permut | PubMed Health

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Physician compensation based on performance appraisal.

Physician compensation in a group practice setting has long been a subject of discussion and time investment, both on the part of managers and physicians. With a changing external environment, including Medicare fee freeze, capitation, and other forms of discounted, contractual medicine, former income distribution plans may not serve group practices well anymore. The ability of group practices to attract, retain, and develop physicians is at least partially dependent upon physician compensation structure. Taking into consideration marketplace characteristics for different specialties and offering equity in the compensation process are important features of any income distribution plan. This paper emphasizes a longstanding business tool, performance appraisal, which may be a key future determinant of physician compensation. The utilization of performance appraisal in establishing physician compensation is discussed and a sample performance appraisal instrument is included as a model.

Employee Performance Appraisal↗

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Medical director, an evolving and expanding role of the physician-executive.

The evolution of the role of medical director is an ongoing process. This paper examines several questions as to the origin, purpose, and practice of physicians in the role of a physician executive. The sense that management practice and medical practice may require different skills is noted. As the field of medicine is faced with increasing turmoil in efforts to balance the cost of health care with the quality of health care, such physician executives may be in the best position to have critical input into strategic decisions bearing upon the delivery of health care. The reasoning behind this notion is that a medical director will have experience in the actual practice of medicine, thus knowing what it is like to be "on the firing line" of providing medical care while at the same time will have appreciation of the business side of medicine related to the issues of economics and, allocation of resources and finance, among other critical management skills. Whether utilizing administrative and management skills in a hospital, group practice, HMO, or industry, the medical director of the present and future will have an increasingly important role in speaking the languages of medicine and business and interfacing between the two disciplines.

Job Description↗