Business Literacy Empowers Physicians to Lead Sustainable Health Systems [PODCAST]

Why It Matters

Without business acumen, physicians cannot effectively advocate for patients or shape system‑level decisions, risking reduced autonomy and poorer resource allocation. Enhancing financial literacy equips clinicians to drive value‑based care, improve efficiency, and assume leadership roles.

Key Takeaways

• Physicians lack formal business education in residency
• Business literacy improves workflow efficiency and reimbursement
• Value‑based care knowledge boosts physician influence in leadership
• Low‑cost resources exist for learning health‑care finance
• Master’s degree optional; basics suffice for impact

Pulse Analysis

The health‑care landscape has shifted dramatically over the past decade, with more than 80 % of physicians now employed by hospitals or health systems rather than running independent practices. This consolidation brings access to capital and technology but also strips clinicians of the financial visibility they once enjoyed. As reimbursement moves toward value‑based models, physicians are expected to understand how their clinical decisions translate into dollars, quality scores, and population health outcomes. Business literacy therefore becomes a strategic asset, enabling doctors to negotiate contracts, influence care pathways, and protect the autonomy that underpins high‑quality patient care.

Despite this demand, most residency programs offer only a cursory glance at practice management, leaving new doctors ill‑prepared for the fiscal realities of modern medicine. Recognizing the gap, organizations such as the American Academy of Family Physicians, the AMA’s Steps Forward initiative, and niche providers like Surround Care Academy have developed modular curricula that cover payer structures, medical loss ratios, HCC coding, and hybrid payment contracts. These programs are often delivered in short, on‑demand videos or live webinars, making them accessible to busy clinicians without requiring a full MBA. The emphasis on practical, low‑cost education democratizes the skill set needed to thrive in today’s system.

Equipping physicians with business acumen has measurable benefits for both providers and health systems. Clinicians who can articulate cost‑saving workflow improvements or justify resource allocation based on quality metrics are more likely to secure leadership positions and influence policy decisions. Moreover, accurate coding and early disease detection not only boost revenue streams but also enhance patient outcomes, aligning financial incentives with clinical excellence. As value‑based care matures, the market will increasingly reward physicians who act as performance‑minded entrepreneurs, driving efficiency, reducing waste, and expanding access to care across diverse populations.

Business literacy empowers physicians to lead sustainable health systems [PODCAST]

Kevin Pho (host) & Kelly Bain (guest) · February 13 2026

Kevin Pho: Hi, and welcome to the show. Subscribe at kevinmd.com/podcast. Today we welcome Kelly Bain. She is a family physician, and today’s KevinMD article is “Why physician business literacy matters.” Kelly, welcome to the show.

Kelly Bain: Thank you for having me.

Kevin Pho: All right, let’s start by briefly sharing your story and then we will jump right into your article and explain why you wrote it in the first place.

Kelly Bain: I am a family physician and have practiced for over 30 years. I think about my story in three parts.

Phase 1 – I came from a rural area and wanted to practice there, doing the full spectrum of family medicine and OB. I just wanted to practice medicine and didn’t think I needed to manage my practice or understand the business aspects.

In an employed position, I had no control over my volumes, contracts, patient mix, or call coverage. I didn’t know how money flowed in my clinic or whether I was covering my expenses. It was uncomfortable, and I wanted input into how my practice was managed.

Phase 2 – I joined a large private, multi‑specialty group that had been doing value‑based care since the early 2000s. We provided home visits, transition‑of‑care management, and preventive services in skilled‑facility settings. I was fortunate to work with physicians who valued both business and clinical excellence.

Later the group was purchased by a large nonprofit system. I was placed on a productivity‑payment system and again lacked control over my panel. I tried to get involved with care‑management, finance committees, and medical directing, but I didn’t have the skill set to be impactful.

I went back and earned a Master’s in Health Care Administration. Around the time COVID hit in 2020, I returned to a setting where physicians directed both the business and clinical sides—Esse Health—for the last three years of my clinical practice.

Kevin Pho: One of the things that struck me is that more and more physicians are leaving private practice. You mentioned lacking business knowledge limited your autonomy. Do physicians need an MBA or a Master’s in Health Administration to thrive today?

Kelly Bain: I don’t think a master’s degree is necessary. It was useful for me, but you can start with basics: understand your financials, how contracts work, and money flow within your office. There are many low‑cost ways to educate yourself about the business of health care.

Kevin Pho: For listeners who haven’t read your KevinMD article, can you summarize it?

Kelly Bain: The article is based on my current work as a faculty physician with Surround Care Academy (a division of Navvis Healthcare). We create curriculum to educate physicians and leaders about the business of health care—who the payers are, how funding works, how policy is made, what value‑based contracts are, and how hybrid payment models operate. We teach terminology such as medical loss ratio and star rating, and we dive into how to perform well under value‑based contracts.

Kevin Pho: So physicians need to learn a new vernacular.

Kelly Bain: Yes. Speaking the language of administrators is crucial when you’re in boardrooms or committee meetings. It helps you be heard. At the same time, physicians bring a clinical lens that is invaluable for shaping policies and workflows that affect patients and providers.

Kevin Pho: Most physicians are now employed, similar to your experience when your practice was bought. Can you give practical examples of how business knowledge helps them?

Kelly Bain: Employed physicians often feel they have no control. Understanding business lets you work cooperatively with your employer to build effective care teams.

Workflow efficiency: By delegating tasks to team members—having staff take histories, place orders, and address gaps in care—you free up physician time for direct patient interaction. You can then argue to administrators that this efficiency adds value to the organization.

Coding and reimbursement: Knowing how Medicare Advantage reimburses based on HCC coding, for example, lets you accurately represent patient complexity. Correct coding can increase the dollars allocated for a patient’s care, which ultimately supports better resources for that patient.

Early disease detection: Understanding that early identification of disease improves outcomes and reduces long‑term costs helps you appreciate why quality metrics matter.

Kevin Pho: Is it true that most new physicians lack this knowledge?

Kelly Bain: Yes. Most residency programs have little to no business curriculum. They may touch on contract reading or practice setup, but they rarely cover how health care is funded, who the payers are, how contracts work, how money flows, quality metrics, star ratings, and their impact on dollars and patient care.

Kevin Pho: What does that mean for the future of physician autonomy?

Kelly Bain: Without business education, physicians can’t effectively advocate for patients or influence system change. Leadership positions require at least a basic understanding of the financial and operational side of health care.

Kevin Pho: Where can physicians get started?

Kelly Bain:

• Professional organizations often provide resources—e.g., the AAFP journal on practice management, the AMA’s Steps Forward program.

• Surround Care Academy offers a curriculum for adult learners, including live or virtual sessions on value‑based care, early disease recognition, and business fundamentals. Short LMS modules (5‑10 minutes) let you dive deeper into specific topics.

Whether you use organization‑provided programs or self‑directed learning, resources are available.

Kevin Pho: Let’s end with take‑home messages for the KevinMD audience.

Kelly Bain: Doctors have great ideas but often need additional education to express them and have them heard by health‑care systems. By helping administrators understand the business side, we can improve resource use, reduce waste, increase value, and expand access. We can shift from feeling like victims of circumstance to becoming performance‑minded entrepreneurs, rising to the challenges our health‑care system faces.

Kevin Pho: Kelly, thank you so much for sharing your perspective and insight.

Kelly Bain: Thank you.