the PULSE http://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog.html en-us Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:56:36 -0600 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 10:56:36 -0600 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Officite Development Scripting Patient Compliancehttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/patient-complilance.html Patient compliance is built on trust and leads to healthier, happier patients and a stronger life-long relationship with them.  Non-compliance on the other hand results in unnecessary delays in recovery, relapses and side effects.

  • In what ways can you help build a solid relationship with your patients?
  • What do you think prevents patients from being non-compliant? And how can you help turn that around?

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]]>Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500Organization Tipshttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/organization-tips.html No, being organized is not always easy!  But the more organized you are, the more productive you can be!  First, we all need to ask ourselves...

  • What really needs organizing? Is it our work station? Our desk? Our closet(s)? Our piles of paperwork? Our files? Our email? Our schedule?  Our thoughts?
  • Now that we've identified some "problem areas" - can you suggest systems that can be put in place to help us manage them?
  • What has worked for you?
  • Or is there something in particular that we can help YOU better organize?   

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]]>Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500Staff and Patient Cell Phone Policieshttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/staff-and-patient-cell-phone-policies.html
  • Do you have a cell phone policy in your practice for staff and/or patients? What does it say?
  • If yes, is this policy strictly enforced? How?
  • Do you find that the policy is abused?
  • Are there consequences for not following the policy?
  • How does the doctor deal with a patient who is on their cell phone when he enters the treatment room?
  • How do you deal with patients who present to the front desk on their cell phones?
  • What is the reaction to patients who are on their cell phones in the reception room (by other patients?) Do they seem annoyed?

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Keeping the doctor on time?http://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/keeping-the-doctor-on-time.html Sometimes, it seems a never ending battle to keep our schedule on time and sometimes it all stems from the doctor's inability to get out of the treatment room. Please help others by sharing ways to keep the patient flow on time!

    • What are some of the reasons you have experienced that allow the doctor to fall behind schedule? 
    • What or who is to blame?  Faulty protocol? NO protocol? Talkative people?
    • What is your "trick" "tool" "method"  to getting the doctor out of the room with the patient when he/she has been there "too long?"

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    In Office Dispensinghttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/in-office-dispensing.html
  • Are you personally involved in dispensing products in your practice?
  • Any successful tips you can share?
  • What products does your practice offer to patients?
  • How do you choose your products?
  • How do you manage inventory?
  • Do you have an incentive program associated with product dispensing?  

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Family members in the workplacehttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/family-members-in-the-workplace.html I know there are many offices where doctors have invited their spouses to have a role in their practice. Some work; some don't. Why is that?

    • Is this a situation that positively or negatively affects you?
    • Can you share ways in which this type of dynamic can work and why sometimes it fails from the doctor, staff and spouse perspectives 
    • What can be done to help everyone get along?

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Difficult Personalitieshttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/difficult-personalities.html Very often I am called into a practice because of “staff inefficiency” and I can tell you, from experience that even though “inefficiency” is the complaint, I realize immediately upon stepping foot in the office that the underlying CAUSE is a personality conflict which first needs to be dealt with.  Before a team can be efficient, they need to learn to work together and that’s not always so easy. 

    It coule be a co-worker, employee, manager/employer, patient or family member....What types of behavior do you find most difficult with and how do you handle it?

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Creating a TEAM environmenthttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/creating-a-team-environment.html It’s funny how the word “team” is usually synonymous with the word “sports” when, in truth, teams are hardly limited to the sports world. They come in all sizes and walks of life. It is also a misconception to think that in order to be a “team” there must be a large number of participants when in fact, as little as two people are all that is needed to fill the bill. 

    • What does teamwork mean to you? 
    • What are the pros and cons that you have experienced working alone - and with others?
    • What does your practice do to encourage a team-environment?

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    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Best staff training methodshttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/best-staff-training-methods.html
  • Who is responsible for training in your office? Doctor? Office Manager? Co-worker?
  • If not the doctor...how much input does he/she have in the process?
  • Which methods/strategies have you found to be the most successful?
  • Do you cross-train staff? Have you found this beneficial?
  • Do you designate a certain amount of time towards training? Is it done before, during or after office hours?
  • Do you evaluate their progress after the training period is over?

    • (Click on "permalink" below to leave your comments)

    ]]>    Wed, 20 Jul 2011 14:57:26 -0500    Hiring Tiphttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/hiring-tip.html
    Hard Skills? Soft Skills? What's more important in the hiring process?

    Technical competence is important, but that should never be the only thing to look for. If the proper training program is put in place, individuals can be skillfully trained to do what they need to. Think more about their soft skills...Does their personality and attitude fit your workplace? Are they easy to get along with? Optimistic and self motivated? Can they make decisions on their own? Do they have common sense; a sense of humor?

    For many, it's the hard skills that get the interview, but it's the soft skills that are needed to get (and keep) the job.

    Q: What do you look for in a new hire?

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    ]]>    Wed, 19 May 2010 13:00:11 -0500    Turn Complaints into Solutionshttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/turn-complaints-into-solutions.html Have a little cheese with your whine?

    Consider implementing a 3-solution policy if people keep coming to you with their complaints. My good friend Jason always said, if you have something to legitimately complain about, I will listen, but only if it also includes 3 solutions -3 ways that you feel can potentially make it better; otherwise all you are doing is whining.

    Q: Complaining is easy. How easy is it to help solve the problem? Can you see this type of strategy worthwhile in your office?

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    ]]>    Wed, 19 May 2010 13:00:11 -0500    Job Satisfactionhttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/job-satisfaction.html What ABOUT it?

    Job Satisfaction is credited with enhancing performance, lowering absenteeism and turnover, producing committed loyal employees with eagerness to "go the extra mile" in order to achieve operational excellence. Is job satisfaction within reach at your workplace?

    If employers appreciate their staff, now is the time to tell them. What's their incentive for doing so? Author Cecil Selig said, "When the grass starts looking greener on the other side of the fence, it's probably because they take better care of it there."

    Q: What do you think? What gives you the greatest sense of "job satisfaction? What keeps you coming back day after day? Do you look at your job as "JUST" a job...or do you get much more personal reward out of it?

    Doctors...what do you do to create a "satisfactory" workplace?

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    ]]>    Wed, 19 May 2010 13:00:11 -0500    Micromanagementhttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/micromanagement.html Are you guilty of micromanaging?

    Want a sure-fire way to demotivate your staff? Micromanage them! However, if you'd rather give them the opportunity to function at optimum efficiency, consider allowing them some flexibility to manage their own work. Here's a few questions to ask yourself. Answer yes to more than two or three and your employees may award you with a lifetime membership into Micromanagers Anonymous!

    • When you delegate a duty to your staff, do you need to give your "stamp of approval" before it is considered good enough?
       
    • Do you review and critique your employees' to-do lists?
       
    • Do you insist that employees do things YOUR way?
       
    • Do you spend most of your valuable time watching what your employees are doing instead of "managing" or "coaching" them?
       
    • Do you criticize more than you compliment?
       
    • Do you get frustrated when your employees cannot do the work as well as you can?
       
    • Do you find yourself re-doing work they've already done?
       
    • Do you feel the need to 'check out' an employee's work after they've accomplished it?
       
    • Do you focus more on the "details" of a project or the "big picture" outcome?
       
    • Do you visit each employee at his or her work area more than once a day?
       
    • Do you give unsolicited advice to employees on personal matters that don't involve their work?

      Questions for Discussion:
    1. What's been your experience with micromanagement?
    2. How have you personally dealt with being micromanaged?
    3. Based on your responses to this quiz, could you be a borderline or full blown micromanager?
    4. Do you feel micromanaging can be a positive thing or is it all bad?

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    ]]>    Wed, 19 May 2010 09:37:33 -0500    Change Managementhttp://www.soshealthcaremanagement.com/blog/post/change-management.html
    What? Change My World??? But this one is so comfortable!

    Picture this:

    Staff:

    You've just returned back from a seminar where you received lots of new ideas for efficiency that you are anxious to implement with the anticipated help of your doctor and yet they refuse to change things from the way they are. You don't understand why you are met with resistance; after all..they PAID for you to attend! How do you convince them that your suggestions can be worthwhile?

    Doctors:

    Same scenario...you return with new ideas with a list of new and exciting changes for the practice... but everything turns sour (and nothing gets implemented) when your staff does not share your enthusiasm. What do you do to remove them from their comfort zone and convince them to at least try new ideas?

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    ]]>    Fri, 28 Aug 2009 18:39:56 -0500