Lessons from America's Eye Doctor: Purpose, Profit, and Pioneering a Nonprofit Practice Model
Lessons from America's Eye Doctor: Purpose, Profit, and Pioneering a Nonprofit Practice Model
Welcome back. Today we have the privilege of speaking with Dr. Dorothy Hitchmoth, who has been dubbed "America's Eye Doctor" by her colleagues. Dr. Dorothy's career is a masterclass in professional versatility: she is a nationally recognized, award-winning professor, lecturer, and patient advocate with 28 years of experience as a physician executive in large hospital networks. A serial entrepreneur, she currently runs a thriving private practice in rural New Hampshire and maintains a consulting career.
In this interview, Dr. Dorothy shares the philosophy behind her success, from overcoming career challenges and mastering the administrative side of a medical practice to her surprising new vision: converting her successful for-profit practice into a nonprofit model. She discusses the importance of professional advocacy, the necessity of strong leadership, and the power of finding your Ikigai—your purpose. Read on to discover the insights that have guided her remarkable career and her bold, innovative plans for the future of eye care.
Key Takeaways
Master the Reimbursement Process: The number one tip for success in a medical-only practice is to prioritize a robust process for verifying and validating patient insurance in real-time. This is critical for minimizing arrears and ensuring a sustainable revenue stream.
Don't Undervalue Your Service: Optometrists are often "the nicest people" who tend to undervalue their services. Do not apologize for your existence or the value you provide. You are taking care of the most important sense; charge appropriately and motivate your staff to understand the value of their work.
Every Experience is a Lesson in Leadership: Difficult experiences or difficult colleagues can teach you exactly "what type of executive you did not want to be." Use all experiences, even negative ones, to reinforce your core values and the type of person and leader you want to remain.
The Future May Require New Models: The current model of eye care—particularly in rural areas with low Medicare/Medicaid rates and high student debt for new doctors—is unsustainable. Dr. Dorothy is pioneering a shift toward a nonprofit model to continue providing care, attract new doctors, and better serve the community.
Find Your Purpose (Ikigai): The Japanese concept of Ikigai (your purpose) can help guide you on a daily basis. When you know your purpose, everything else—including challenges—falls into place a little easier.
Interview Highlights with Quotes
On Being "America's Eye Doctor" and Patient Advocacy
Dr. Dorothy shares how the moniker came about and what it means to her.
"I've been so involved across so many, aspects or facets of the profession, and I've been in the public eye outside of the profession. And you know, one of the things I'm probably the most proud of is an advocacy, a national advocacy award that I received in 2017, which was done for patients... I think that is the thing I'm most proud of. And it was around that time that, you know, my colleagues are like, 'you're just America's eye Doctor Dorothy.'... If that term helps me help a single patient in some way, or improve their life or their quality of life in some way, or a doctor who's caring for them in some way, then so be it."
On The Bold Nonprofit Practice Model
Dr. Dorothy reveals her future plans to address the unsustainability of the current system, especially for rural practices and new doctors facing high student debt.
"We're probably gonna convert our practice into a model, a nonprofit model. There's a, a veterinary care model that I've been falling very close in Maine, that allows for doctors to, to be well paid, staff to be well paid, allows you to operate as a nonprofit... I'm like, 'Hmm, I'm in a rural area. It's hard to recruit docs. It's very costly to buy a practice. There's significant student debt. There's an immediate need for eye care. Can we explore a different model?'"
On The Critical Necessity of Financial Processes
When discussing her success in building a thriving, medical-only practice, Dr. Dorothy stresses the administrative side.
"If you cannot collect, if you cannot get paid, your practice will not be successful... The number one, if I could give one thing, one tip, it's. Verify and validate insurance using the most modern electronic tools.... We have that down to 98% clean data going in, because if you don't have that, your arrears is gonna go like this."
On Leadership and Valuing Your Services
Dr. Dorothy speaks about the common challenge of optometrists undervaluing their crucial work.
"I see lots of folks asking, should I bill this? Should I bill that?... Oh, these are the nicest people I know... And they undervalue their services all the time... And they apologize sometimes for their very existence. And I'm like, 'Excuse me, don't do that. You are taking care of the most important sense that there is. You spent years studying to get the knowledge that you have to help protect. Don't undervalue that.'"
On Learning from Difficult Career Challenges
Dr. Dorothy reflects on how a "rotten chief of surgery" became an unexpected mentor.
"He taught me exactly what type of executive I did not want to be... I learned how to deal with a very difficult person and situation... and it helped me double down and really understand what person I wanted to be... I don't really look back and think, 'oh God, I wish that didn't happen to me.'... They're just ones that I learned a little bit more from compared to others, and they were a little less fun."
Dr. Dorothy's insights provide a roadmap for not just operating a successful practice, but for leading a purposeful career in the process. The idea of embracing an Ikigai as a guiding principle truly ties together her passion for patient care, professional leadership, and innovative business thinking.
What aspect of Dr. Dorothy's career—the focus on reimbursement, the push for the nonprofit model, or the concept of Ikigai—do you find most inspiring for your own business?
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