If you’re like most of our clients, you’re interested in the traditional services accountants provide. At the very least, you’d approach us at the end of the year wanting to know how much money you owe Uncle Sam. We provide this service for all of our clients. But to be honest, many other firms provide the same thing.

At Bogumil, Holzgang & Harris, P.C., our relationship with clients goes further than that. As opposed to “historical accounting,” which is the practice of waiting until the year’s end, telling clients how much they’ve earned, then filing tax returns, we are involved with our clients throughout the year. We are financial healthcare consultants.

We take the time to learn much more about your business and, as a result, are more useful to you. We have chosen as an accounting firm to specialize on assisting health care professionals. In addition to garnering a broad understanding of the profession as a whole, we’ve become intimately acquainted with your particular practice. We get to know your personnel, we help design compensation packages, and we assist in personal financial planning. We also see larger trends in the business and can share with you the practical experience we’ve gained through other clients.

Our client retention rate since our founding in 1972 is testimony to the value our clients put on our services. We’ve had an average turnover rate of less than 2%. In fact, our two original clients are still with us today.

Becoming a Businessperson

In many cases, we train doctors for a new job: the job of being a business person. We realize heath care professionals have had extensive training and preparation. But not, most likely, in the area of business administration—the other half of running a practice. It’s our practical experience with health care professionals, and our affinity for the business world, that can help you and your practice be as successful as possible.

To illustrate one of the many ways we can help you with your business, consider the story of one of our clients. (The names, as they say, have been changed to protect the innocent.)

Recently, Dr. Michelson came to us, quite frankly disappointed that his new practice wasn’t making as much money as he had anticipated. Business was slower than he felt it should be. And on Fridays in particular, his office was a veritable ghost town. After we examined his practice, we found the problem: it seems his receptionist, who often traveled to Seattle on the weekends, intentionally steered patients away from Fridays so she’d have an excuse to leave the office early. In essence, she was thinking more about her schedule than Dr. Michelson’s profits.

The lesson? The position of receptionist is extremely important to a medical practice. We understand that there are many aspects to your business, besides seeing patients that must be looked after.

A Year-Long Relationship

The reason we could help Dr. Michelson is that we’d developed a partnership with him. Rather than just seeing him around tax time, we were involved with his practice throughout the year.

We develop quarterly reports for the majority of our clients. These reports keep everyone on top of their business, and helps set appropriate courses for subsequent quarters. With our finger on the proverbial pulse of your practice, we keep you informed of issues like overhead expenses, personnel compensations and even retirement planning. You’ll also be able to quickly spot negative trends like spiraling salaries and over staffing, allowing plenty of time to make adjustments before a major disaster takes place. With quarterly reports, you’ll know which areas are working smoothly and which ones require special attention.

One of the best ways to illustrate the breadth of the services we offer is to examine the case of one of our longterm clients.

Dr. Pfeifer, a dentist from the outskirts of Portland, came to us on referral just out of school. He began his career working as an associate with two other dentists. After several years, the senior partner was ready to retire and gave Dr. Pfeifer an opportunity to buy into the practice. We helped our client with financing, partnership agreements, and all the other details surrounding his purchase. After spending time at his office and learning how it was run, we suggested ways he could increase his efficiency, helped him set up a retirement plan, and created compensation packages for his new employees. Several years later, when his partner decided to sell out, we helped negotiate a fair deal and assisted in recruiting a new associate. Later still, when he offered his new associate an opportunity to buy in, we used our tax knowledge to arrange the most advantageous partnership. With proper planning, we’ll enable Dr. Pfeifer, if he so chooses, to retire at the age of 55—which is good news at a time when, according to statistics, only half of all doctors will be able to retire at 65.

We are committed to providing close, personal attention to our clients. We take pride in giving you the assurance that the personal assistance you receive comes from years of advanced training, technical experience and financial acumen. Our continual investment of time and resources in professional continuing education, state-of-the-art computer technology and extensive business relationships is indicative of our commitment to excellence.

We know healthcare, and believe in the value of relationships. We view every client relationship like a partnership, and truly believe that our success is a result of your success.