Guide your growth with goals
By Susan Hoy

Goal setting is a necessary part of managing your practice. Most practices set goals, but few have perfected the process. Here are some suggestions to help you set goals that will guide your growth:

• Set reachable goals Setting an unreachable goal will create apathy or distain. Set goals that can be attained with focus and hard work.

• Reward appropriately. Don’t break the bank by giving too much away, but make the reward of reaching the goal worth the effort. Rewards do not always have to be monetary, but they should be creative. If a goal is not met, do not give a reward.

• Create an action plan. Every goal should be accompanied by an action plan. That action plan should list each action item (task) that must be done to achieve the goal. And the action item should be assigned to a specific person.

For instance: If you have a goal to increase collections, the responsibility does not just fall on the person billing the insurance. (See the Action Planning Sheet.)

• Track progress. Once you set your goals, revisit them often. If you have set a goal to collect a certain amount that month, figure how much must be collected each week and each day and track your progress. Readjust the goal if necessary.

• Set completion dates. Well-written goals are specific, measurable, achievable, reasonable, and time-oriented. Set a completion date for each goal. The date forces action.

SOLVE PROBLEMS, SET GOALS

In a recent goal-setting seminar, a chiropractor asked, “Our goal was to achieve a certain number of patient visits. In the past months, we have fallen far short of that number. Should we lower the number and start again?”

Instead of lowering the number, analyze the problem and set a new goal and action items.

In this instance, patient visits happen because of new patient visits, patient commitments, patient tracking, multiple scheduling, rescheduling, and reactivations. Which of these components has not been executed? Look for the cause.

Set an appropriate overall goal, such as: Achieve xx patients visits per week.

Then, develop your action plan, with items for each person to execute, such as:

• Execute the marketing plan. Suggested action items for DC: Review marketing plan at weekly staff meeting; assign ad-placement responsibility to office manager.

• Get a commitment from each patient. Some suggested action items for DC: Discuss progress since last adjustment; review initial x-rays and compare to new x-rays; review goals.

• Schedule patients. Suggested action items for CA: Schedule patients for appointments for next 30 days before they leave the office; contact patients who have missed appointments and reschedule them; call cancelled appointments and reschedule them.

• Reactivate patients. Suggested action items for CA: Call patients who have not been to the clinic in three months and schedule them for an appointment; send letters to patients who have not come in for six months.

Taking a methodical approach to goal setting will create a winning scenario for the patients, your team, and your practice. Proper goal setting should create enthusiasm for everyone.

Susan Hoy is an award-winning team trainer and consultant. She presents training seminars for teams throughout the country and is the author of two team training manuals. The newest is entitled, Systemize, Organize, Simplify. Susan can be reached at 215-674-0130, suzzhoy@aol.com or through her website at www.beefitup.net.