Speaking of Money …
by Corporate Relations and Business Strategy Staff
September 13, 2007 -- Historically, economists and other experts have viewed financial behavior as driven by rational and analytic decision-making. In recent years, however, the emerging fields of behavioral finance and financial psychology have emphasized that thoughts, feeling and values affect the way people handle money and make financial decisions.
Although psychologists may view their clients’ financial worries as appropriate grist for the therapeutic mill, some may not stop to think about how their own feelings about money affect their practice and their efforts to achieve professional goals.
This article describes some practice-related activities that your attitudes about money can affect. It also provides a list of questions to help you start developing a better understanding of your approach to financial issues.
GETTING COMPENSATED FAIRLY
Setting fees - While you should consider a variety of factors when determining what to charge for your services (for example, usual and customary rates in your geographic area, the type of services you provide, your qualifications and amount of experience, the length of sessions), your attitudes about money also affect the way you set your fees. Do you promote yourself as a premier service provider and command high rates, go for the average, or resign yourself to accepting lower payment?
Using a sliding scale - Do you adjust your rates and offer other discounts to make your services more affordable, or do you stick with your full fee and offer some pro bono services?
Accepting third-party payments - What types of contractual arrangements do you enter into and what reimbursement rates are you willing to accept? How prompt and active are you in submitting insurance claims and pursuing reimbursement?
Challenging claim denials - How aggressively do you address denials when they occur and how many do you eventually write off as unpaid?
Collecting unpaid bills - Do you take steps to collect unpaid bills, such as sending a copy of a past-due bill or a letter to the client, or do you avoid the matter? What dollar amounts do you consider significant enough to pursue rather than to write off? How long do you wait before considering other options for collection?
MARKETING YOUR PRACTICE
Doing the work - Do you actively market your practice through public speaking, networking, and the use of collateral materials such as business cards, brochures, and a website? Do you enjoy “getting out there” and promoting your practice, view it as an unfortunate marketplace reality, feel like you shouldn’t have to expend the effort, or avoid marketing activities altogether?
Spending the money - Do you budget enough for a comprehensive and effective marketing plan or invest the bare minimum? When you make budget allocations or cutbacks, how do you prioritize your marketing activities? Do you feel that your marketing budget is money well spent or view it as a “throw away”? Do you track the results of your marketing efforts?
Diversifying your activities - Do you stick with providing traditional mental health services or have you found new ways to apply your expertise in health and behavior? How actively have you developed and marketed services in a particular niche area? What range of services do you offer and what activities do you charge for? How much risk are you willing to take on in your efforts to branch out into new areas?
TALKING TO YOUR CLIENTS
Discussing financial issues - How comfortable are you talking about fees, billing, collection, and other financial arrangements with clients? Do you actively discuss financial issues as part of the informed consent process when you initiate services and again later, as necessary?
Providing clear information - Do you include a handout in your new client information packet that describes your policies and practices related to scheduling appointments, cancellations, no shows, the forms of payment you accept, claim submissions, co-payments and other business arrangements?
Openly addressing financial difficulties - Do you actively discuss financial problems such as missed payments when they arise? Are you comfortable engaging in these conversations with clients or do you feel awkward or avoid bringing up the issue? Can you address financial problems directly, while still being supportive and exploring the impact on treatment?
UNDERSTANDING YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT MONEY
Exploring the following questions may help you realize more fully how and why you approach financial issues as you do:
- What key messages about money did you learn as a child?
- How did your role models handle money?
- What are your core values regarding earning, spending and investing?
- Are you intimately familiar with the details of your finances, do you leave them to someone else, or do you tend to avoid dealing with money issues altogether?
- Do you budget and plan for purchases or spend money more impulsively?
- Are you willing to accept more financial risk for potentially higher returns or would you rather play it safe for a guaranteed but lower rate?
- What does money represent to you (for example, success, greed, status, stability)?
- What functions does money serve for you (for example, substitute, tool, benchmark, excuse)?
- Is money frequently a source of stress and conflict in your life?
- Do you feel that the services you provide are valuable? How valuable?
- Are you comfortable accepting payment for your services?
- Have you set professional and financial goals for yourself? Do you have plans for how to achieve them? Do you stick with your plans? Are you monitoring your progress?
SpeakingofMoney.pdf
(62.86 Kb)
To learn more about managing your practice's finances, visit the Practice Finances section.
