Are Super Groups Becoming The New Norm In Podiatry?

My parents love to remind me of a story of something I did when I was younger. I used to wear about five T-shirts at the same time because I didn’t want to have to wear just one. The “Strawberry Shortcake” shirt, based on the cartoon character, was always the very outer one. This is evident in countless pictures of me looking like a kid bodybuilder.

   Now, many shirts and many years later, I still feel as if I am wearing many different shirts at the office. Accounting, human resources, training, supervising and public relations are just some of the shirts I wear every day. Of course, there is my podiatrist shirt. This one is my Strawberry Shortcake shirt, my main outer shirt. Some days, it would be nice if this was the only shirt I had to wear.

   Thankfully, I do not have to wear all of those shirts at once like I did when I was younger. I have an office manager and I practice in a group along with three other podiatrists, which lessens the need for me to do all of the duties myself.

   With all the recent talk of “super groups” in podiatry, it seems that this new type of practice is becoming a trend. These groups range from having multiple podiatrists together all the way to having primary care and multiple specialties under the same umbrella. The main benefits of these super groups include the ability to wear one shirt, that of the podiatrist, with an administration team to manage the business side.

   The ability of sharing electronic medical records is also an advantage in super groups. This access can reduce wait times for notes or avoid the possible duplication when testing. Negotiating better insurance contracts, improved patient efficiency, cost reduction, a built-in referral base and additional patient services are other benefits of super group practices.

   Of course, in a super group, one could see a potential drawback in the sense that the physician might be left out of day to day administrative decisions within the podiatry practice. Nonetheless, decisions could still be part of the podiatrist’s day but these would be guided by the expertise of the business partners.

   A lot of the process of super groups is similar to being with a podiatry group. The process focuses on adapting from an autonomic system to one of delegating to others to build a collaborative team. Deciding on roles within the group, holding frequent meetings and delegating authority should prevent the paralysis of the super group and give it the potential for success.

   Even when one is already part of a podiatry group, it is tempting to look at multispecialty super groups. With the new healthcare reform being developed by the government, it is frightening to think that you would get left behind if you are not part of a larger group.

   However, the last thing I would like to see is a mass movement toward the managed care organization model that already exists. While these models have their place, managed care or government overseen groups as the only options would be a deterrent to the recruitment of future physicians.

   Being a podiatrist, as we all know, is actually more than just one job responsibility. The verbal and written communication skills, research ability and community service are part of the occupation that one has to nurture and balance with personal commitments.

   The real reason we chose this profession is to have everyday access to something that we are passionate about. That is one of the reasons I have not attained a MBA degree because it is not in my interest path. I am sure it would help in the group practice to have that business background and apply it to practice, but that implies wearing a shirt outside of the podiatry realm.

   I see a super group model becoming the norm in the future. I think just one T-shirt will be good for the whole group, even if it is a scrub top and not Strawberry Shortcake.

   Dr. Lawton is in private practice in Naples, Fla.

   Dr. McCord retired in December 2008 from practice at the Centralia Medical Center in Centralia, Wash.