This Orthopedic Clinics of North America addresses important practice management guidelines necessary to survive and thrive in today's marketplace. Unfortunately, due to continued reductions in Medicare and private payor reimbursements, it is more important than ever to understand the "business" aspects of orthopedics and methods of enhancing practice revenue. Clearly, by developing group ancillary services, the physician will achieve the highest quality medical and surgical care for his patients by choosing the best practitioners associated with each service line and thus controlling the type and quality of care that each patient receives. A byproduct of controlling the patient's care, is that tremendous efficiencies and cost controls can be achieved by eliminating wasteful services and the downtime associated with inefficient staff; especially in a hospital-based setting. In today's economic environment, this type of patient care is mandatory to provide the best and most efficient delivery care systems possible and as legislative pressure continues to demand lower costs for procedures and patient services, the orthopedist is in a perfect position to enhance his practice and deliver the highest quality care possible at a reasonable cost. This periodical utilizes the resources of nationally recognized experienced, dedicated professionals in virtually all areas of the health care delivery system to describe how to achieve these goals.