It’s officially summer, which means now is the perfect time for clinics to start prepping for the fourth quarter. The past year has been a lot of adapting to the COVID world, so your staff can finally have a chance to breathe and evaluate how they’ve been doing plus other aspects of the office.
Training
To remain efficient, the staff should have a training day every year to reiterate important processes. It’s also the perfect time to go over any updates to the system and ask the staff if they can think of ways to innovate their short- and long-term tasks. The billing team should always be learning since standards or coding can change whenever, but this could be their opportunity to really deep dive into essential billing resources.
Evaluate Software
Just like how the healthcare industry changes on the regular, the technology clinics use is undergoing updates too. Check that all of the software you use is up to date and ask the staff their opinion on whether it’s helpful or a detriment to their work. If it’s been having a lot of issues or it’s not working well for your office’s needs, then it might be time to look for a new software—especially if your bottom line has been suffering because of it. Billers rely on this software to accurately fill out claims. Luckily, the slower summer months are the perfect time to invest in that research and training.
Evaluate Equipment
Similarly, the equipment you’re using such as computers, printers, or scanners for the front desk and medical equipment for the nurses and doctors should be evaluated. If performance has gone down on any of these pieces, then it could be an issue for overall efficiency. It’s better to invest in the best equipment for your budget and research industry breakthroughs to see if there’s a better machine for your needs.
Office Updates
Walking into a waiting room that looks like it hasn’t changed since the 90s is commonplace for some medical offices, but that doesn’t mean it has to be. For new patients, your waiting room will be their first opportunity to get a read on your clinic. A fresh coat of paint, some new, comfortable chairs, and little modern touches will do wonders for the curb appeal of your office.
Most importantly, those aspect involving your billing should be properly evaluated. A billing team that falls behind industry standards or does not have the proper software to support them will start to affect a clinic’s bottom line. Contact the experts at Outsource Receivables Inc. to see where your specialty clinic can improve with better workflow software and/or outsourced billing.