Physicians and Finances: Q&A with Jon Shaw, BBVA Compass

In May, BBVA Compass and CareCloud announced that they were joining forces to help medical practices ease administrative burdens, improve client care and boost financial performance via an integrated package of bank services and healthcare technology.

The collaboration comes at a critical time in the healthcare industry. CareCloud’s 2014 Practice Profitability Index, which surveyed more than 5,000 physicians nationwide, found nearly 40 percent of U.S. medical doctors see profitability trending down in the coming year.

The CareCloud blog recently spoke with Jon Shaw, BBVA Compass’ healthcare segment director, to elaborate on the alliance and the unique offering both companies deliver to medical practices looking to improve financial health.

1. What are the factors that brought BBVA Compass together with a healthcare IT provider?

BBVA Compass has operated in healthcare banking for some time and saw an opportunity to provide a deeper level of service to our medical clients and practices in our communities. Physicians face a tremendous number of challenges in operating their practices, from clinical and practice management to revenue cycle management. BBVA Compass felt there was a significant opportunity to combine our financial services and real-time transaction capabilities with a leading IT offering to help practices operate better and focus on delivering the best care possible.

2. Why partner with CareCloud? What are the benefits for your medical practice client base?

When BBVA Compass identified the customer need for healthcare IT solutions, we realized we needed to team up with a company that shares our commitment to innovation and helping medical practices modernize their operations. After an evaluation that took a year and a half, we found that partner in CareCloud. It became clear that CareCloud had a superior platform and the necessary flexible IT options to help physicians and their staffs optimize their revenue cycle management and clinical workflow.

Physicians need flexible options. They need the financial services BBVA Compass provides, and they also need an efficient IT infrastructure to operate their practice and deliver the best care possible. We feel collaboration with a cloud-based company like CareCloud, which shares the same vision for how healthcare should work, allows us to best serve our clients.

3. What is the current rollout strategy? Any early success from the initial announcement in May?

We have an aggressive go-to-market strategy that is focused on growth areas in the U.S., including the Sunbelt region, particularly Texas and California. We have a dedicated and specialized sales force that partners with CareCloud’s sales and professional services teams to serve the geographic regions we are targeting.

Our teams live and work in the same regions they serve, so they have a unique understanding of the challenges and needs of the medical community. We feel our commitment to digital banking and financial services, combined with CareCloud’s clinical and practice management platform, will allow practices to modernize and also stay independent.

We are excited to already see momentum in the marketplace as practices look to harness our combined suite of services — from health IT, practice lending, payroll, and consumer banking services for physicians and their employees.

4. In an industry that traditionally ebbs and flows with consolidation, how do BBVA Compass and CareCloud allow medical professionals to succeed on their own?

It’s important to understand that, in reality, physician practices are really just small businesses. As small businesses, they need access to leading IT offerings and practice-specific financial services to drive profitability and stay independent.

Our overall goal with this partnership is to better serve a market that is increasingly affected by the demands of technology and regulation. By tapping both companies’ commitment to innovation, we feel we can enable practices to streamline their operations, increase profitability and ultimately improve care.

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