HOW DATA AND EARLY COMMUNICATION CAN BANISH BAD DEBT
SOUTH AFRICA HAS A SPENDING CULTURE WITH LOW SAVINGS LEVELS , AS IS EVIDENCED IN SA ’ S DEBT-TO-INCOME RATIO WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY AT 78 %. THIS HAS CREATED A TREND WHICH IS EVIDENT IN MANY COMMERCIAL INDUSTRIES , MOST RECENTLY IN HEALTHCARE , THAT HAS SEEN A SHARP RISE IN PATIENT DEBT AND THE AMOUNT OF TIME REQUIRED TO FOLLOW UP ON OVERDUE ACCOUNTS .
CONSUMER CREDIT EXTENSION IN SA IS CURRENTLY AROUND R1.8 TRILLION , WITH ROUGHLY 9 % OF THIS DEBT THREE MONTHS , AT LEAST , IN ARREARS . IN ADDITION , AROUND 45 % OF THE 22.5 MILLION CREDIT ACTIVE CONSUMERS HAVE IMPAIRED CREDIT RECORDS . THIS HAMPERS COLLECTIONS ACTIVITIES AS IT BECOMES INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT FOR CREDIT PROVIDERS TO EFFECT AS THE LEVELS OF DEBT RISE , WITH MANY COLLECTORS ACROSS MULTIPLE INDUSTRIES TRYING TO SOLICIT PAYMENTS FROM THE SAME CONSUMERS .
EARLY STAGE COLLECTIONS
THIS IS WHERE EARLY-STAGE COLLECTIONS , , PLAYS A CRUCIAL ROLE IN THE PATIENT- DOCTOR RELATIONSHIP IN ORDER TO KEEP COMMUNICATION TRANSPARENT AND GENTLE . FINANCIALLY SOUND MEDICAL PRACTICES USE DATA DRIVEN REVENUE CYCLE MANAGEMENT TO MANAGE ALL TRANSACTIONS RELATED TO PATIENT CARE AND INVOLVE MULTIPLE STEPS TO ENSURE ACCURACY SUCH AS VALIDATING PATIENT INFORMATION BEFORE THE APPOINTMENT , COLLECTING PATIENT-LIABLE AMOUNTS , CODING SERVICES CORRECTLY , TRACKING CLAIMS , COLLECTING PAYMENTS AND FOLLOWING UP ON REJECTED CLAIMS .
OPTIMAL COLLECTIONS STRATEGIES SHOULD CONSIDER THOSE CONSUMERS THAT MAY HAVE INSUFFICIENT FUNDS TO MEET THEIR FULL MONTHLY DEBT OBLIGATIONS , BUT WHO HAVE THE ABILITY TO PAY A PORTION OF THEIR COMMITMENTS .
CGM ’ S EARLY-STAGE COLLECTIONS , IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KOEGELENBERG ATTORNEYS , FOLLOWS UP AND COLLECTS OUTSTANDING BALANCES FROM SLOW PAYING PATIENTS . IN SOME CASES , THIS MAY INVOLVE SETTING UP PAYMENT PLANS WITH PATIENTS , SO THEY CAN MAKE REGULAR INSTALMENTS OVER TIME .
“ WITH OVER 20 YEARS OF EXPERTISE IN DEBT COLLECTION , WE HAVE FINE-TUNED OUR AUTOMATED PROCESSES PRIORITISING ON POTENTIAL GOOD PAYERS TO MAXIMISE EFFICIENCY AND SUCCESS AT MINIMAL COSTS TO THE MEDICAL PRACTITIONER ,” EXPLAINS CONRAD KOEGELENBERG , FOUNDER & SENIOR PARTNER AT KOEGELENBERG ATTORNEYS .
DATA ANALYTICS CAN BE USED TO PREDICT THE BEST POSSIBLE DATE TO COLLECT AGAINST A CUSTOMER BASED ON HISTORICAL PAYMENT BEHAVIOUR . HAVING THIS INFORMATION READILY AVAILABLE AND ALIGNING THE COLLECTIONS STRATEGY TO THIS DATE ALLOWS A COLLECTOR TO INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD OF A SUCCESSFUL COLLECTION IN THE FUTURE .