The success of your medical practice hinges on the efficiency of your back office. They process everything that happens in your practice. The more that your back office staff can handle, the more profitable your practice becomes.
Streamlining your medical back office is a challenge, but is well worth the effort. Here are some of the best practices for developing an efficient medical back office.
Segment Work By Skill Type
Begin by segmenting the work that has to be done into responsibilities based on work skills. This gives each person on staff a set of responsibilities to worry about that they can handle on their own without any guidance.
Pick a Good Administrator
Your practice can easily be held up by paperwork, which is why you need a good administrative specialist in the back office. You need someone that is both quick and accurate when it comes to processing papers. A faster administrator means you can keep up with paperwork and eliminate slowdowns.
If you manage a large practice, then you may want to consider having multiple administrative specialists on your team.
Create Workflow and Paperwork Stations
Every patient that comes into the office goes through a specific process from start to finish. Your staff should have a process to go through too. Patient records, samples, and every other thing used in each appointment need a place to go once used. That’s why you create workflow and paperwork stations.
This is a two-fold process. Start by creating places to put items used in appointments. It can be as simple as having an inbox for patient records that need to be updated on an administrator’s desk. Once you designate a place for things, don’t let those things be placed anywhere else. This prevents important items from getting lost and the office from becoming cluttered.
The second step is to create a workflow for every step of each appointment. Everyone should know what to do and where to go at every step. As long as everyone follows their assigned process, the office can run smoothly and efficiently.
Use Technology When Possible
When possible, adopt and use technology to make your office more efficient. Automation can be an effective way of improving your overall efficiency. There are systems that can handle routine tasks for you so that you can focus on other tasks. Use these systems where possible to free up time for you to work on what is important and to get things done faster.
For example, many practices are switching to a digital format for patient records. You can have your patients’ records transferred digitally, and many doctors use large format tablets to access those records during appointments. That way, you don’t have to worry about printing files, storing them, and having someone retrieve, update, and file them for you. It eliminates an entire process from your operations, freeing up time and resources to work on other things.
Incorporate Telehealth When Possible
Another way of making the back office of your practice more efficient is to incorporate telehealth when possible. Telehealth appointments are more efficient than in-person appointments. They often go faster, and it is easier for the back office staff to coordinate operations when there are fewer patients to work with in person. Add telehealth appointment options to reduce the amount of in-person work staff has to do, and you should see an improvement in your efficiency.
Get More Help From Doctor At My Door
The number of ways that you can improve your back office efficiency is seemingly endless. Learn new ways from Doctor At My Door. Let us help you achieve the level of performance that you want from your practice.