Part 2 of a 3-part symposium titled "How Do We Maintain Quality, Improve Efficiency, and Sustain the Physician-Patient Relationship?" Amidst the increasing complexity of health care, payers are taking the driver's seat in demanding value for their health-care purchases. Ophthalmologists will be asked to measure quality more carefully, evaluate their processes more closely, and become more efficient. The Academy's Committee on Practice Improvement is developing activities to help members increase efficiency and enhance the quality of the care process. These shared learnings and best practices will help ophthalmologists to evaluate their own care processes and target improvement efforts, while sustaining the keystone of care, the physician-patient relationship. In this symposium, speakers describe quality improvement initiatives and lessons learned. The need for effective communication and teamwork for quality patient care is addressed, as well as keeping focus on the patient in a busy practice. Speakers in this symposium address practice efficiency through appropriate delegation of tasks by the ophthalmologist.

Part 1: Data on the Use of Physician Extenders to Increase Practice Efficiency
Part 2: Benchmarking Your Practice and Lessons Learned
Part 3: Practice Efficiency in the Real World and How the Academy Can Help Members