Patient complaints are never fun to receive. Whether the issue is scheduling, an unexpected bill, a long wait, or something more serious, complaints can quickly take time and attention away from everything else happening in the practice. But complaints can also be useful. When you stop looking at each complaint as an isolated problem and start looking for patterns, they can reveal where your systems, communication, or patient expectations may need improvement. In a recent pol

Payroll is often one of the first expenses people notice. But before assuming something is wrong, ask a simple question: Was this a three-payroll month?

During a recent Doctors CFO Facebook Live, we discussed four challenges that come up often in medical and dental practices: cancellations, accounts receivable, fee conversations, and the feeling of always being behind. Here are a few practical ways to start addressing them.

Historically, many practice owners have thought of financial management as something that happens after the month is over. The accountant closes the books. Reports are generated. Someone explains whether revenue went up or down. That's important—but it's backward-looking.

Accounts Receivable is different from many other financial challenges because, in most cases, you don't need to sell anything new to improve it. The work has already been done.

The problem is not simply the interest expense. Too much personal debt can begin influencing how a doctor operates the practice.

Every practice owner has experienced it. The schedule looks full. The team is working hard. Patients are coming through the door. Yet somehow, profits haven't increased.

Hiring an associate is one of the biggest decisions a practice owner can make. Most owners assume that if collections are growing, the practice is becoming more profitable. Unfortunately, that's often not true. We've analyzed hundreds of medical and dental practices over the years, and one pattern appears again and again: Revenue increases while owner income stays flat—or even declines. The problem usually isn't the associate. It's the way practice owners measure associat

A strong practice does not run on hope. It runs on repeatable systems. If cancellations happen almost every day, then cancellations should not surprise the office. The office should have a cancellation list, a short-notice protocol, and a clear owner responsible for filling open time. There should also be a backup person in case the first person is out. That is the difference between reacting and managing.

Most practice owners assume payroll problems come from complicated tax laws or payroll software. In reality, many payroll headaches begin with something much simpler: employees who don't take ownership of their time cards.

Many owners spend enormous energy chasing new patients while overlooking hundreds of existing patients who simply stopped coming. Your Patient Recall Report may be one of the most valuable reports in your practice.

Accounts Receivable isn't just a financial report. It's a roadmap to hidden cash. The practices that thrive aren't necessarily the ones producing the most. They're the ones collecting efficiently, protecting cash flow, and turning earned revenue into money in the bank. If your AR report contains large balances over 90 days, don't assume the opportunity is gone. You may be sitting on one of the biggest financial opportunities in your practice. And the first step is knowing exa

For many medical and dental practice owners, bringing on a partner is one of the biggest decisions they'll ever make. A successful partnership can create growth opportunities, improve work-life balance, and provide a clear path toward succession. A bad partnership, however, can create financial strain, operational challenges, and years of frustration.

Every office manager eventually discovers there are two kinds of employees: recipe followers and recipe makers. Both can be valuable, and both can have a place in a medical or dental practice. But if you do not understand the difference, you may manage them the wrong way and spend years frustrated with people who are not actually bad employees. They are simply different kinds of employees.

In a medical or dental practice, the owner is often the most valuable person in the building. For many practices, the owner is also the primary producer. They diagnose, treat patients, perform procedures, build trust, and generate the revenue that keeps the practice alive. That is why micromanagement is so expensive.

For dermatology practices, that might mean: Adding cosmetic services like injectables or laser treatments to increase APC Improving scheduling and patient flow to increase daily visits Expanding provider availability if waitlists are growing The key is identifying which opportunity creates the biggest impact with the least operational strain.

When reviewing resumes, here are the top green flags and red flags to watch for in each area.

At Doctors CFO, one of the many operational metrics Carl analyzes inside a practice is employee turnover. Because turnover numbers alone don’t always tell the full story. Some practices may simply experience a difficult hiring environment or temporary staffing challenges.

Every strong decision starts with accurate numbers. Without clean books, financial reporting is unreliable—and strategic planning becomes guesswork.

Most practices don’t fail because they aren’t working hard enough. They struggle because they’re operating without clear visibility into what actually drives performance.