Why Every Medical Practice Needs An Operations Manual
“What even is an operations manual?” I hear you groan as your to-do list gets ever longer. I get it. A lot goes into running a business, and you already have a lot of things to do.
And you’re probably asking yourself, “Why do we need an operations manual? Everyone knows what they’re doing already.”
But an operations manual is an incredibly important document that every medical practice should have. Think of this manual as part know-it-all, part gossip.
Know-it-all, because it knows how to do every job, process, and task. Gossip, because it’s in everyone’s business!
An operations manual essentially records how everything is done. How everyone does their job, and how they do the smaller tasks that make up their bigger responsibilities. It’s an incredibly valuable resource for you.
Let’s say someone quits, gets sick, or for any reason can’t come into work. The manual will tell you exactly what they do and how they do it, allowing someone else to slot in and keep things moving. It could be as simple as a password, that no one apart from the absent person knows.
Say you’re hiring someone new, a manual telling you exactly what the previous person did in this role will help you know who to hire.
Or when it’s time to evaluate performances, if you have a very clear understanding of what each person is supposed to be doing, it makes it easier to evaluate their performance, promote them, and move responsibilities around.
I hope you’re seeing the utility of an operations manual.
Now, I totally understand that creating a manual will take time and effort, so let me give you three reasons why the process of creating an operations manual will be good for you and your business.
You’ll get to see what everyone does (and what could be done better!)
If you’re busy seeing patients, you might not have much to do with the booking process, for example. In putting together the manual you’ll need to speak to the receptionist and get them to walk you through all of their processes.
This will allow you to see how each part of the practice works, and also give you a stronger sense of what the patient experiences at every stage of their experience with you.
Maybe everything is working really smoothly. Perhaps there are small changes that would improve the experience of your employees and patients.
You’ll never know if you don’t look.
You get a new appreciation for what everyone in your team does
When we’re very siloed, we can lose sight of the big picture and may miss important details if they’re not part of our day-to-day lives.
As both the boss and a practicing doctor, you may not see the little details that happen each day.
How friendly the receptionist is when they greet everyone. How the nurse is always helping around the practice. How the delivery people are always on time.
Conversely, you might notice glaring mistakes or poor attitudes that you wouldn’t have noticed otherwise. Whatever the outcome, it’s good to know what’s happening!
You get to clarify and define roles
Job responsibilities in small businesses can often be vague, with people often completing tasks that are not technically their responsibility, one employee does too much and another isn’t doing enough.
This is a chance to get super clear, and not just leave the processes and roles to chance, but to make sure everything is clear, defined, and above board.
So there you have it! I hope I’ve convinced you to create your own operations manual. Not only will it make life easier if someone else needs to step into a role, but you will get to see exactly what is done and how on a daily basis.
What Next?
If you are thinking of working on the business side of your practice, you can read my book or book a call with us.