June 4th 2025
Market pullbacks tempt investors to time the market, but history shows staying invested beats guessing the highs and lows—time > timing.
iPLEDGE compliance: Program protects patient, prescriber from serious consequences
September 1st 2008The iPLEDGE program is excellent for protecting the prescriber, so that he or she can continue to practice medicine and responsibly care for patients with severe acne, one dermatologist says. However, the issue of compliance remains a major hurdle.
Troubled economy: Are derms seeing an impact on their practices?
September 1st 2008Economists debate whether the United States has reached a full-fledged recession or is simply teetering on the brink, waiting for some sign it will either topple or be pulled back. Meanwhile, as the debate rages, people are dealing with the effects of soaring energy costs, rising unemployment and inflation.
(Some) business is booming: ASDS figures show cosmetic procedures still robust
September 1st 2008Despite concerns about the U.S. economy, a March 2008 survey by the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS) showed that nearly one-fourth of the survey's 562 respondents were experiencing increased bookings for existing aesthetic patients versus fall 2007.
Ups & downs: As economy ebbs, top-notch service, noninvasive procedures keep derms afloat
September 1st 2008While dermatologists offer mixed assessments of the impact of the sluggish U.S. economy on their specialty, they say today's tighter market clearly is intensifying the trend toward noninvasive procedures.
Column: Feeling the crunch: Unstable market affects home buyers, remodelers
August 1st 2008The subprime mortgage crunch is rippling through our economy in a variety of different ways. Many homeowners are postponing plans to sell until the market stabilizes; others, with hopes for trading up to a bigger home, are opting to stay put, turning instead to remodeling or enlarging.
Column: Weighing the options: Protecting your assets during a medical malpractice crisis
August 1st 2008You don't need to read another article telling you how terrible the malpractice crisis is. You already know that lawsuits are on the rise, jury awards are out of control, malpractice premiums are escalating to the point of being unaffordable, and the practice of medicine as we know it is severely threatened.
Remote viewing: Teledermatology increases access to specialists in Canada
August 1st 2008With constraints on healthcare human resources in some geographic areas in Canada, teledermatology offers advantages, such as increasing access to dermatological expertise. The use of store-and-forward technology avoids the logistical challenges associated with real-time teledermatology.
Worth a thousand words? Pictures can speak volumes; make sure you like what they're saying
July 1st 2008Clinical photography in dermatology can be an invaluable tool, if used properly. Following some basic guidelines can take the guesswork out, lend credibility and present a much more accurate picture.
Graft coding: Expert reviews AMA's current terminology
July 1st 2008Current Procedural Terminology codes were significantly changed in 2007 to clarify previous confusion, and physicians must understand the changes in order to submit the correct billing and, ultimately, to be reimbursed, one expert says.
Opinions: Growing medspa industry, shrinking economy impact practices
July 1st 2008Over the past 10 to 15 years, there has been a boom in the phenomenon commonly known as "medspas" - an outgrowth of the purely Aesthetic day spa, combining herbal wraps and massages with medical or near-medical therapies, such as microdermabrasion and chemical peels, and progressing into lasers, fillers and Botox treatments.
The essential financial contract: Early planning, negotiation save headaches later on
June 1st 2008As with any legal or insurance planning, the early bird is richly rewarded. Nowhere in practice planning is this truer than in the Buy-Sell agreement. The reason is not so much economic, but political. If this planning is done before any owner is close to a disability, divorce, retirement, or death, all owners are in the same position relative to each other. That makes the negotiation of a standard deal for all owners a much easier and smoother process. Planning early for a Buy-Sell agreement will truly benefit you, your family and your practice.
(Not) a tangled Web: Internet is powerful online tool for patient education
June 1st 2008Every dermatology practices could use a good Web site - and one that provides timely, accurate educational information for patients would be a boon. One enterprising practitioner saw the need, and developed a system to meet it.
Non-M.D. dermatologists: Providers meet service demands - in some regions
May 1st 2008Analyses based on census data and membership surveys from the American Academy of Dermatology, the American Osteopathic Association, and professional societies for physician assistants and nurse practitioners show inroads are being made to improve workforce
Cutting costs: Keep ahead of falling reimbursement with these tips
April 1st 2008To offset the trend of falling reimbursement, you can either see more patients or cut costs. Before you try doubling your patient load or handing out pink slips to your entire staff, consider these ideas to trim expenses in your dermatology practice:
Lights, camera, action! Internet video provides promotional, informational outlet
March 1st 2008National report - Now that picture-and-text websites are commonplace, dermatology practices that want to stand out are finding that online videos fit the bill, sources say. This may be particularly true for cosmetic-oriented practices, they add.