Every decision we make is, at some level, based on an informed risk-reward ratio using the best information available for our patients. Yet, why when we see the word "risk" used in financial circles are we at a loss.? Why do we not understand what risk means in a financial context?

After all of the recent weeks' heavy lifting, Jeff Brown changes pace with a piece that's a bit more whimsical, with some medical, business, and finance related quips and adages that he's accumulated in recent months.

Because time is all we have (besides our good names), we often find ourselves bending to wants of insurance and pharmaceutical companies, our economic and emotional needs, and even our patients' (sometimes unreasonable) demands. This diminishes us each time we do it as the ends certainly do not justify the means.

Recruiting a new doc and bringing him/her up to full speed costs tens of thousands of dollars and much more in potential production loss. This reality underscores the importance of employee retention to the health of your practice.

For a doctor opening a solo practice, trying to find out what rates other practicing physicians charge is an exercise in futility. Why? Legal and ethical ramifications for doing so. In some cases, other docs are in the same boat as you...they just don't know.

When thinking of your medical organization affiliations, the pertinent question should be the value proposition. Is the act of paying dues spending money to make money, or throwing good money after bad?

Physician burnout does not just have an effect on our families and work error rates; it has a tremendous effect on the bottom line and is far more common than docs want to talk about. The solution, simplified: work smarter, not harder.