Budget Season
Mike Abrams, Executive Vice President of the Iowa Medical Society
Deb Potter, Ed Whitver and Crystal Swanson are three IMS staff who lead our budgeting process.It's budget season all over the country, and IMS has been working to allocate our resources across some important service areas. During a political debate, one of the candidates (I can't remember which one, and it doesn't really matter) had a great line. He said "Don't tell me what you value, show me your budget." The clear implication is that, if you valued it, your budget would reflect it.
So if you studied the IMS budget, what would you conclude that we value? Among other things:
- Advocacy, especially Medicare equity and a fair liability system. We are budgeting to explore litigation as a remedy for the Medicare inequity. When we eventually win that fight, it will impact every doctor in Iowa, including those (such as pediatricians) for whom Medicare is not a huge factor.
- Physician workforce: Our budget will reflect special services to IMS members to help you recruit the partners you need to have a successful medical practice and serve your patients.
- Communication: We will continue to sophisticate the way we communicate with you, especially via this website.
Budgeting is both macroeconomics and microeconomics. You need to hover over your organization and ensure you're providing resources for the things the members want to see you do. But at the end of the day, you are assigning specific dollar amounts for specific items. It is an excellent opportunity to contemplate your activities and shift your organization in necessary directions.