Growing the Private Practice Physical Therapist Network

The Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice (FLPTPP) bought a booth to grow the network at the 2013 Florida Workers Compensation Conference in Orlando August 19th -21st at the Orlando World Center Marriott hotel.

Left to right
Tim Richardson
Larry Feldman
Matt Serlo
Chris Mulvey
Armin Loges
not pictured: Ginger Hoang Le

We believe that this marquee event will be the ideal platform for us to promote our FLPTPP brand and begin the dialog for future business opportunities. Thousands of industry participants will be at the event and over 550 vendors. It has grown to be the largest event of its kind in the country.

As a group the FLPTPP are more attractive to prospective insurance companies as the cost associated with connecting with private practice physical therapists individually can be burdensome for insurance companies.

We have come up with a campaign for this booth and the web site called “It’s Personal. Every Time”. We believe this achieves our objectives as it differentiates the private practice physical therapists'  unique business model. It’s Personal because:

• We the owner/members are stake holders with a vested interest in mutual success…
• Many therapists left corporate employment that were impersonal…
• Third party administrators have hindered the case manager’s ability to communicate with the treating therapists…
• Unfair reimbursement can never lead to sufficient quality care…
• As business owners, we pay into this work comp system…
• With “US” it’s personal for the Employee, Employer, the nurse case manager, the insurance company and personal to our own self interests.

We hope you can join the FLPTPP and help us grow!

New Speakers for the 2013 FLPTPP Conference in Orlando!

Cash Based Physical Therapy and the new Medicare Functional Reporting regulations are just two of the big topics the Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice will tackle for you at the 3rd annual conference at the Lake Buena Vista Hilton on May 18th and 19th, 2013.

We'll have Nancy Beckley, President of Nancy Beckley & Associates LLC, discussing Medicare Compliance.

Pauline Franko of Encompass Consulting and Education will discuss new requirements for Functional Reporting using G-codes.

For private practice physical therapists interested in expanding their revenue base away from traditional Medicare and commercial insurance, Dr. Aaron LeBauer PT, DPT, LMBT will discuss how you can build a practice like his, which is 100% cash-based.

We will have an expo with many physical therapy vendors as well as a Saturday professional luncheon where you can continue your learning.

A clinical track will run concurrent with a business-oriented track. You should bring your Office Manager and staff to fully capture all the information at the 2013 FLPTPP conference. Get three of you signed up for only $575!

More programming is available at the Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice (FLPTPP) web site.

We'll see you there!

Sign up here.

Physical Therapist's Private Practice Meeting

WHEN: Saturday, November 10th, 2012 from 12:00 to 3:00pm

WHERE: Florida Gulfcoast University FGCU School of Physical Therapy in Ft. Myers.

Lunch, drink and snacks sponsored by: A&G Spinal Solutions and Orthopedics, providers of specialized high quality medical Equipment. (Thank you Ryan Williamson).

8695 College Parkway Fort Myers, FL 33919.

Phone: (239) 985-4138)

Meeting will be in Marieb Hall 200, parking is in the adjacent parking garage 4. 

WHO: All are welcome to attend - PTs, PTAs, Students, friends, etc.

Hosted by Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice, FLPTPP.com 

PURPOSE: This meeting will inform physical therapists and physical therapy students of the immediate issues facing private practioners and physical therapists in all settings regarding healthcare reform. There are many issues currently on the horizon such as the October MedPac report, PIP legislation, and co-pay legislation that is directly impacting our clients access to care and physical therapist reimbursement.

As a group we are banding together with FPTA and our private practice association FLPTPP to effect positive change to allow fair access to clients and compensation. Healthcare reform will happen with the current economic decline and we need to take action or it will happen without us.

Remember if you're not at the table, you're on the menu!

THANK YOU FGCU School of physical therapy and Arie VanDuijn, program director for sponsoring our meeting. We encourage students to attend and have free membership to students in the FLPTPP group to allow them access to current issues.

We also have CEU meetings that students can attend and most recently in Orlando student volunteers attended for FREE!

Tim Richardson Running for Secretary of the Florida Physical Therapy Association

Statement: I would be honored to serve my fellow physical therapists as Secretary of the Board of Directors of the Florida Physical Therapy Association (FPTA).

The FPTA Board of Directors is a responsibility I take very seriously since the FPTA is the largest organization representing physical therapists and physical therapist assistants in the State of Florida.

I believe our voice is strongest when we speak, not from our own self-interest, but from the perspective of our patients. I believe we should ask ourselves, when developing FPTA policy:

"What can I do, as an FPTA member, that can improve my ability to provide care or the ability of my patients to access my services?"

***

Online voting for FPTA offices began on Tuesday, August 14 at 9:00 am and will close on Friday, September 14 at 8:30 pm. FPTA will use the emails on file with APTA for contacting members regarding elections and voting procedures.

During the FPTA Annual Conference in Orlando, candidates will have the opportunity to speak during the Chapter Caucus.  Additionally, the Nominating Committee has scheduled a "Meet the Candidates: session during the Exhibit Reception. Members will have the opportunity to chat with candidates and ask any questions they feel necessary.

Biography: Tim Richardson graduated from the University of Florida in 1992 with a Bachelor's in Health Science (Physical Therapy).

Tim received Manual Therapy Certification from the University of St. Augustine in 2001. Since 1996 he has owned and managed private physical therapy clinics in Manatee County, Florida.

Tim is returning from a one-year sabbatical in Spain where he provided cash-based musculoskeletal and vestibular physical therapy services to Spanish-speaking people.

Tim just recently (June 2012) was elected to the North Central Florida Health Information Management Systems Society (HiMSS) Health Information Exchange Committee, which advises the HiMSS Board of Directors.

He is also a founding member of the Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice (FLPTPP), serves on their Board of Directors and serves as their Legislative Chair.

Tim is serving his third year on the Florida Physical Therapy Association (FPTA) Government Affairs Committee and has served on the Web Site Task Force responsible for the FPTA logo. Tim also serves on the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Orthopedic Section Practice Committee and the Health Policy & Admin Section Technology Special Interest Group.

Tim advises the Florida Medicare Administrative Contractor, First Coast Service Options Inc., as a member of the Provider Outreach and Education Advisory Group.

Contact Information:
email: TimRichPT@MedicalArtsRehab.com
LinkedIn profile: http://linkd.in/zPc0EH
Twitter handle: https://twitter.com/#!/timrichpt
Skype name: TimRichPT
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/timrichpt

Thank you for your consideration.

Remember, in a democracy its not "Majority Rules", but the majority of people WHO VOTE that make the rules.

Physical Therapists Learn from the Best in the Business

Physical therapists learning from each other - that's what we've always done.

The 2012 Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice (FLPTPP) Meeting is August 17th to 19th, 2012 in Orlando, Florida.

Armin Loges, PT and crew have lined up a dynamite cast of presenters for you.

Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice 2012 Annual Meeting

Pick the educational courses that you need this year - all come with CME credits!

Saturday, August 18th (morning)	Medicare Compliance	Nancy Beckley, MS, MBA, CHC
Saturday, August 18th (morning)	Pelvic Floor Dysfunction	Tricia Trinque, MHE, PT
Saturday, August 18th (morning)	Dry Needling	Brian Ruchin, PT, DPT
Saturday, August 18th (afternoon)	Marketing Your PT Practice	Nitin Chhoda, DPT
Saturday, August 18th (afternoon)	Cervical Thrust Manipulation	James Dunning, FAAOMPT, MMACP
Saturday, August 18th (afternoon)	Business 101 for Physical Therapists	Dick Hillyer, DPT, MBA, MSM
Saturday, August 18th (afternoon)	Innovation in Physical Therapy	Matthew Harkness, MPT, MTC, TATC, CEAS
Sunday, August 19th (morning)	New Florida PIP law	Dick Hillyer, DPT, MBA
Sunday, August 19th (morning)	Red Flags for Cervical Instability	Eric Douglass, DPT, OCS, FAAOMPT
Sunday, August 19th (morning)	Legal Implications for Physical Therapists	Michael Magidson, Esq.
Sunday, August 19th (morning)	Acupuncture	Irene Hujsa, PT, OCS and Julietta Planchart, PT, CNS
Sunday, August 19th (afternoon)	DME and PTPP	Timothy Beury

Last year's conference was important just because of the energy in the room and the excitement it generated (as well as the MANY new members of the FLPTPP that joined!)

This year's conference promises to be MUCH bigger, MUCH better and MUCH more exciting.

We'll see you there!

Sign up here!

Psst! Want a HOT tip? Form your own Physical Therapist Association...

All kidding aside, newly formed physical therapist associations seem to be a growth industry lately.

Full disclosure, I am on the Board of Directors of the Florida Physical Therapists in Private Practice (FLPTPP).

However, I do not belong to any of the following:

• Physical Therapy Business Alliance (PTBA)
• Physical Therapy Alliance of Upstate New York (PTAUNY)
• New Jersey Society of Independent Physical Therapists (NJSIPT)

Perhaps there are unmet needs among physical therapist businesses that these groups are forming to address. According to the PTBA website:

"While our profession has successful organizations of "individuals" (American Physical Therapy Association, Sections of the Association, Components), a void exists in which the professional interests of physical therapy can be championed as businesses."

These three groups are organized to support the business activities of private practice physical therapy clinics. According to the PTAUNY website:

"The purpose of this organization was and is to keep the private practice owners and therapists informed of local and national trends, promote our practice, provide continuing education opportunities and communicate with local third party payers on issues that affect the services we provide."

The common thread of all three groups seems to be declining reimbursement and an inability of private practice physical therapists to act collectively. especially when negotiating third party insurance contracts. According to the FLPTPP website:

"... we will assist our members to control their financial well-being through improved reimbursement, sharing of expertise & best practices, and volume purchasing power."

While some traditional physical therapist organizations may feel stifled by these newly-formed groups, I think there is still plenty of oxygen left in the room.

Some of these groups, like the NJSIPT, have their own Political Action Committee (PAC) for soliting contributions. Will that decrease contributions to traditional physical therapist associations?

No, I don't think it will. There are more PACs in existence in 2012 than EVER in history and this Presidential election will require EACH political party to raise $1 BILLION dollars to field a candidate.

Does the presence of seperate groups confuse legislators who may be used to just one PT group per state?

No, just look at the physicians' societies - in Florida we have the following:

• 1 Florida Medical Association
• 17 sub-specialty physician asosciations (eg: orthopedics, family practice, etc.) AND
• 67 county medical societies, one for each of the Florida counties.

By the way, EACH of these physician groups donates to their PAC to support their own (sometimes conflicting) interests. Do you think Florida legislators are confused by all the physician medical societies?

Not as long as the money keeps flowing! :)