bonuses for optometrist

[Iforaneye]

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I am a optometrist employed by an OD who owns lease at a corporate optical setting. I get a base salary plus bonuses based upon how many patient I see per day. Needless to say I rarely if ever meet the bonus. I feel that getting a bonus based on how many patients I see is kind of silly and was wondering how other docs set their bonuses for associates. Do they base it off of a percentage of gross for the day/week/month? What percentage is considered fair for both the doc and associate?

 

[imemily]

I think more info is needed about your current situation, but some docs give you a percentage of gross billings that exceed a certain amount.

I have never heard of giving a bonus relative to the amount of patients seen.

 

[Iforaneye]

I want to approach the doc with a new bonus schedule but wanted to make it fair for both of us. I would say on average professional services are around $700-$1000/day and gross totals being around $800-$1500 (including contact lenses sales).

 

[optsuker]

Per head bonus isn't the best system. It doesn't motivate you to be more productive with the patients you have & in a commercial setting, there aren't many ways for you to increase your patient numbers through your own efforts.

A more effective system would be you recieving a % of all collected fees after $XXXX/day (insert your own numbers).

But the bottom line is that he's the boss, so it's his rules. Your task is convincing him that HE will make more under a new system.

 

[KHE]

I am a optometrist employed by an OD who owns lease at a corporate optical setting. I get a base salary plus bonuses based upon how many patient I see per day. Needless to say I rarely if ever meet the bonus. I feel that getting a bonus based on how many patients I see is kind of silly and was wondering how other docs set their bonuses for associates. Do they base it off of a percentage of gross for the day/week/month? What percentage is considered fair for both the doc and associate?

If you don't mind sharing, what is your base and what do you have to hit to make bonus?

What would you rather have?

 

[Visionary]

If you don't mind sharing, what is your base and what do you have to hit to make bonus?

What would you rather have?

Important questions for sure. I think what KHE is getting at is that there are two parts to the structure you describe: 1) hard money (i.e., salary) and 2) soft money (i.e., bonus). The hard money is what is guaranteed, whereas the soft money is variable. If you want increase the soft money, chances are you will need to decrease the hard money, unless you are essentially asking your boss for a raise in the restructuring--which is fair, of course, if you think you're putting in the work. Some would argue that maximizing the hard money, while minimizing the soft, is actually better, because it provides a more predictable income. Chances are, however, that your overall earning potential will be better with a stronger soft aspect. That all depends on how much you want to put into it, though.

I would also agree that basing the bonus on % collections over a determined goal would be better than the per head approach. That's more consistent with the rest of the health care industry. I can't speak for optometry, but for ophthalmology, it's usually around 20-25% of annual collections (not gross) above a productivity goal.

 

[Ryan_eyeball]

If you don't mind sharing, what is your base and what do you have to hit to make bonus?

What would you rather have?

I've had a doctor start to fill in sometimes. I usually give him $300 guaranteed plus 15% of net collected/day. Professional fees only assessed. It puts a little risk for both sides. If we see one or two patients for $100 or $200, then i'm on the short end (yes these slow days exist).

To get $400/day the associate doc must gross the practice $667. Pretty manageable most days for 6 to 8 patients.

$300 base salary + $100 bonus (15% x $667) = $400

The more he grosses over $667 the more he takes home. $400 dollars/day is pretty standard in our area.

 

[imemily]

I've had a doctor start to fill in sometimes. I usually give him $300 guaranteed plus 15% of net collected/day. Professional fees only assessed. It puts a little risk for both sides. If we see one or two patients for $100 or $200, then i'm on the short end (yes these slow days exist).

To get $400/day the associate doc must gross the practice $667. Pretty manageable most days for 6 to 8 patients.

$300 base salary + $100 bonus (15% x $667) = $400

The more he grosses over $667 the more he takes home. $400 dollars/day is pretty standard in our area.

Was this figure ($400/day) common even in the past? Say 10-20 years ago?

 

[Iforaneye]

I am given $350/day base salary. My bonus of $50 kicks in after I see 20 patients (which rarely happens) and increase by $50 for every 5 patients over 20. On average we see around 10-15 pts/day. I would almost rather take a decrease in base pay for a increase in bonus potential. I like the way Ryan has his bonus set up. Like you said there a few days where we only see 2 patients and I would lose money but I feel that is worth the risk in the long run.