Dr. FB has been in the practice for five years. He is a good fit for the culture of the practice and gets along well with the other doctors. However, members of the staff have started complaining to the office manager about frequent clinic cancellations by Dr. FB. Overall, he sees as many or more patients than the other providers. His collections are good, but the staff reports they struggle with the short-notice clinic schedule changes. The clinic staff members report that having to talk with patients who are frequently upset about short-notice cancellation is stressful and diminishes their job satisfaction. There is also a large cost in time to make these schedule changes, which further adds to the stress. The office manager is not concerned about the cancellations or lost revenue but is concerned about staff burnout and potential overtime pay related to these schedule changes.
Diagnosis:
Provider-initiated short-notice cancellations
Options:
- Put parameters in place for how close to a clinic the provider can make changes (success unlikely because things always come up)
- Hire more staff (may not be sustainable if clinic margins are tight)
- Incorporate effective scheduling technology into the practice to manage scheduling changes (many options are available with various advantages and disadvantages)
- Review our blogs on Appointment Types and Provider-Initiated Cancellations
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