Consulmed

In the late 1980s, Cheryl Brown was the Medicare specialist at Lakeview Hospital in Bountiful. She discovered that her knowledge was valuable and began marketing it to practices along the Wasatch Front that dealt with Medicare. She became a coder and consulter, but it wasn't long before physicians began requesting her services for their billing needs. She was hesitant because she knew there wasn't sufficient billing and collections software available.

Cheryl approached David Gillies, who had both a bachelor's degree in medical technology and master of business administration, to write the software. He agreed, and the two formed a partnership. David completed the software in the fall of 1991 and in 1993, they formally incorporated their business as Consulmed. In 2000, Cheryl and David were married.

Bountiful-based Consulmed is designed to be a liaison between doctors and patients. The company provides medical billing and consulting services. Ideal Practice, a sister company, provides practice management consulting, contract negotiations and management. Combined, Consulmed and Ideal Practice provide enough services to run a physician's entire office including the staffing, management and billing.

Consulmed services all types of physicians from family practice to surgeons, neonatologists, radiologists and many other specialties. The company's software uses a technology that allows patients to look at their account and make payments online.

The Gillies have always done their best to stay ahead of technology. They have also been involved in several national billing organizations and were recently named the Utah Medical Association's preferred billing vendor. Consulmed has been so successful that it now has clients throughout Utah and in Idaho, Arizona and Nevada, but the core business is concentrated on the Wasatch Front. David likes to say that Consulmed takes care of bill collecting so doctors can focus on what they do best: providing top-quality medical care.