What does your practice have in common with the local Chili’s restaurant? Hint: It’s not your everlasting affection for the Molten Chocolate Cake.
You both want to move customers, or in your case patients, in and out of your locale as swiftly as possible without hurting the quality of service.
We all know the more patients you see a day, the more revenue your practice makes. But the real question is how do you safely treat more patients without making them feel rushed or unimportant?
None of us want to make the same mistakes as this Las Vegas doctor, who exposed colonoscopy patients to hepatitis C by reusing vials of Propofol.
His practice was so preoccupied with decreasing patient turnaround time that staff members ignored proper bio-hazard disposal protocols. Now, he faces jail time and, even worse, carelessly ruined the lives of hundreds of patients.
According to a 2005 study of overcrowding in American emergency departments, many workflow errors can be solved with a smarter delegation of office duties. Inefficient processes, slow or drawn-out decision-making, problems with workflow design, and underutilizing staff all contribute to slow turnaround rates.
In an attempt at helping you avoid such costly mistakes, PYP has compiled a list of 8 simple methods to improve patient turnaround time without compromising the quality of care.
8 Simple Ways To Decrease Patient Turnaround Time
– Assign a check-in clerk whose sole duty is to check in patients.
– Give patients a medical history form that is self-explanatory and easy to fill out.
– Assign a medical assistant to take vitals and prep charts. This way, there will be no delay in charts being brought to the back clinical area.
– Post an order board in a common area to prevent delays in patients waiting for common office procedures such as injections.
– Implement an efficient Practice Management system that seamlessly guides you between check-in and checkout without a hitch. PMSs that process pre-insurance checks are useful too as they facilitate the check-in process.
– Request resident physicians to review patient charts prior to patient visits.
– Make sure your EHR is easy-to-use and fast to navigate. This will decrease the amount of time the doctor spends inputting data and increases his or her time talking to the patient.
Finally, align your practice with a culture of service. Clinical staff that is aware of and cares about service and patient satisfaction will work to improve patient flow.
What strategies has your practice incorporated to improve patient turnaround? Let us know in the comments sections below!
