In this installment of the podcast Drs. Elise Kramer and Jon Andresen discuss associate doctors. We describe our history with associates and what we look for in a potential colleague. How best to hire and and compensate associates is discussed as well as how we integrate them into our practices. 

In this episode Drs. Kramer and Andresen discuss meetings and conferences, in general, with a particular focus on the Global Specialty Lens Symposium (GSLS) that took place in January of this year in Las Vegas. We discuss the contact lens and cornea related education available at the various meetings and conferences and highlight the importance of these events especially for networking with likeminded colleagues. 

In this latest episode Drs. Kramer and Andresen discuss how we compensate, appreciate, and empower our employees. Recorded on the last day of 2021 we wish all our listeners great happiness and success in 2022. 

In this episode Drs. Andresen and Kramer talk with Dr. Brian Chou of San Diego, CA about private equity, consolidation, and exiting in private optometric practice. Dr. Chou shares his firsthand knowledge of the process and gives excellent advice for those considering deals in that space. In addition, Dr. Chou discusses his current specialty lens contact lens practice and touches upon the consolidation potential of specialty practices. 

In this episode Drs. Kramer and Andresen discuss metrics and benchmarks that can be useful in managing your specialty contact lens practice. How to become data driven. 

In this episode Dr. Kramer and Jon discuss how we connect with current patients to both retain them and maximize spend. That last bit sounds mercenary but really we are looking to provide the best care possible and in a fee for service environment that means more revenue, which is not a bad thing. We define marketing as the background work and strategy that enables and directs advertising, or the actions and spend that is required to effectively target our patients. Hope y'all enjoy and find something useful. 

In this episode Dr. Elise Kramer and I discuss capital expenses in the setting of a specialty lens practice. The concept of capital expenses is introduced and the manner in which they are accounted for is described. Then we discuss in detail the pros and cons of instrumentation for specialty contact lens practices and offer some practical buying advice. 

In this episode Dr. Kramer and Dr. Andresen discuss current issues in employment and compare notes on how we find and hire great employees. We end by recommending some great books to read this summer.