The Yearly Review: Measuring Physicians Practice Staff Performance

The end of the day. Patients have been seen, staff have gone home, and now you start on the rest of your “day.” Then, the interruption of a knock on your office door. It’s one of your key office staff members reminding you that tomorrow is her annual review. You smile and say your goodbyes, and the door shuts behind her. As you let out that heavy sigh, your mind races around thinking, “Well, how DID she do this year?”  

Below I have several areas to consider, and questions you can ask yourself about the employees performance.

Job Knowledge/Skill Set
Consider evaluating the following criteria with a point (one- to five-point) system:

• Takes initiative to learn new skills and take on new tasks
• Clear understanding of all insurance types
• Seeks assistance from supervisors when answering patient questions he/she is unsure of
• Consistently pulls charts for the next day, insuring patient eligibility for appointment
• Performs daily tasks with confidence and efficiency
• Consistently collects patient co-pays, deductibles, and co-insurance 
• Manages time well
• Keeps up to date with all authorizations and insurance verifications
• Minimizes scheduling errors by having a greater understanding of patient injuries and personalities
• Returns patient phone calls in a timely manner and practices good phone etiquette
• Is organized and prepared for each day
• Maintains petty cash log from month to month, and insures all cash monies collected are logged and accurate   
• Minimizes tickler list by submitting all appropriate paperwork to billing in a timely fashion
• Maintains sign-in sheet
• Has all billing sheets filled out and completed prior to sending over to billing representative
• Copies requested chart notes per procedure
• Makes suggestions regarding how the business can grow and how she can be a part of that growth.

Relations with Fellow Staff Members
• Adheres to policies outlined in the employee handbook
• Takes responsibility for her own actions
• Minimizes conflict in the office
• Is respectful to all staff members

Communication with Patients
• Properly instructs patients on their intake paperwork and explains specific insurance policies thoroughly
• Evaluates and accommodates the needs of each individual patient and seeks help when needed
• Is respectful to all patients regardless of circumstance
• Communicates with patients in a clear, professional, and understandable manner.

Dependability/Attendance
• Minimizes absences and provides ample notification, if unable to come in
• Adheres to time-clock procedures, and has few to no errors on her time card as defined by policy
• Shows up on time and is prepared for the day
• Minimizes time spent on personal matters during working hours
• Handles “down-time” in appropriate fashion 

Stress Tolerance/Attitude
• Is pleasant to work with
• Handles busy hours with patience and a calm demeanor
• Handles personal stress in an appropriate manner avoiding interference with work
• Portrays a positive attitude while in the office

General Appearance     
• Adheres to the dress code policies as defined in the employee manual
• Always presents him/herself in a professional manner
• Appears alert and ready to work each day

Initiative/Team Player
• Maintains a clean waiting area without being asked
• Volunteers to help others
• Recognizes tasks that need to be done and completes them without request              

By taking a look at these areas you will be able to identify the strengths and opportunities for any support staff member. Assigning a one-to-five scale system, and asking your staff member to fill out this same list with the same scale, will provide great talking points for that staff member’s review.

Next week we will discuss the importance of providing requested information from your billing department.

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