MONITOR THE HEART WITH ELECTROCARDIOGRAPHY

An electrocardiogram, or ECG or EKG, can be performed in a doctor’s office or a hospital to record the electrical signals in a person’s heart. “It’s a common and painless test used to quickly detect heart problems and monitor your heart's health,” according to Mayo Clinic.
A report from Medical Economics found that for the year 2018, ECG was the most popular ancillary service offered in internal medicine/family medicine. “Survey results show electrocardiogram is the most popular ancillary service for physicians to increase practice income,” the report noted. Spirometry was the second most popular service offering.
 
In the past, patients typically went to a medical testing facility for an ECG rather than their regular physician. While many patients still go to a dedicated testing center, it’s becoming increasingly common for physicians to provide ECGs in their clinics.
 
“More and more physicians are getting an ECG machine and offering ECG tests in their offices,” according to Advanced Rx. “The ECG test and others can be a good way for physicians to grow revenue, which is why several different tests are listed as profitable ancillary services.”

DELIVER CUSTODIAL ANCILLARY SERVICES

Custodial services include hospice care, long-term and nursing home care, and home healthcare. Patients may need these services during recovery from a chronic illness, an injury or for the rest of their life due to an illness or a disability.
 
Also known as care delivery services, custodial care typically helps individuals with the activities required for daily living and basic care needs. These activities include bathing, dressing, eating and using the bathroom.
 
The care is often recommended by a medical professional, although the workers providing custodial care are not medical or skilled care professionals themselves. Custodial ancillary services are an opportunity for non-acute providers to continue delivering services to their patients after they experience a significant or life-changing event and need additional help.

PROVIDE ONLINE HEALTH EDUCATION

Myriad websites offer free healthcare advice, diet information and exercise routines, so this is a competitive arena. But it’s also a chance for a clinic to share health and wellness information to patients and their families online. Patients are more likely to trust their physician’s site than an unknown site.
 
Online learning platforms that allow people to learn about specific illnesses and how to best treat them are currently trending in healthcare. The problem is that not all online health information is reliable--and some things purported as facts can be harmful.
 
When a clinic posts trustworthy healthcare information online, it’s a way to connect with patients who are reluctant to visit a facility or prefer virtual care. It’s also a way to reinforce messaging that patients hear during in-person visits and build loyalty across patients—and maybe even attract new ones. Clinics can monetize the educational materials by tying them back to facility services or offerings, such as dietary plans or routine checkups, to drive business.
 

CONSIDER RADIOGRAPHY SERVICES

Not every facility has the budget and space to offer radiology services. Radiology equipment is expensive and using it can require special rooms, like lead-lined walls for x-rays.
 
Yet radiology is a powerful tool for diagnosing diseases and includes x-rays, CT scans, nuclear medicine and different types of diagnostic imaging, which are needed by a wide patient population. For practices with sufficient medical billing volume, adding in-house radiography is a way to serve that population instead of sending them to another facility.
 

TAP INTO A GROWING PART OF HEALTHCARE

In non-acute healthcare, ancillary services and ancillary care help patients with treatments and diagnosis, and support the care provided by their family physicians. These services represent the third largest segment of healthcare costs, making up about 30% of healthcare spend, according to HealthSmart and other sources.
 
Offering one or more ancillary services allows a facility to diversify and branch out into other areas of healthcare. The result can be happier patients and a new source of revenue.