Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Planning effective office meetings for your medical practice

Rosemarie Nelson
Physician
July 30, 2011
86 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share

Do you cringe when you hear the phrase “office meeting”? Some medical practices meet too frequently and some seldom meet, but others have it just right – routine meetings with preparation, an agenda, and follow-up. Your practice can get it right, too.

And make no mistake, meetings are important. Medical practices, regardless of size, have a variety of positions that are not interchangeable, but do interact throughout the day.

To make sure interactions go smoothly you need to meet with the staff to identify issues and slowdowns and to develop solutions to meet the needs of the patients, the providers, and the employees.

Many medical practices also complain about a “lack of communication” in their office.

Office meetings satisfy both needs – they can improve communications and serve as a forum for problem solving.

So, why don’t more medical practices regularly hold office meetings?

Probably because past meetings have failed miserably. The usual reason that a meeting fails is because it hasn’t been well planned.

We’ve all attended meetings that became gripe sessions without any problem-solving or resolutions for the issues raised.

We learn quickly from bad meetings that it’s best to just not hold any meeting! But that’s not an appropriate response.

The best response is to resolve to hold better meetings. Doing so is not that hard.

Running an effective meeting requires advance planning. You’ll want your meeting to run on time, to minimize wasted effort in the meeting, to advance the improvement process, provide clarity, and obtain agreement and buy-in to change.

Preparation is more than setting an agenda. The agenda represents those items that must be worked through to achieve the objective for having the meeting.

Let’s look at the agenda format with two sample agenda items below:

Agenda Item Reporting Party(s) Allotted Time Decision/Next Steps Person to Handle/Due Date
Check-in process to expedite rooming the patient Front desk supervisor, nurse manager 30 minutes Recommended change/action items Assign based on discussion
Copay collection Front desk supervisor 15 minutes Discuss accepting debit cards for payments from patients Assign based on meeting discussion

The first item on the agenda focuses on getting patients roomed for the provider as quickly as possible. The goal is to engage everyone in the discussion so that recommended changes are widely understood and accepted among the staff.

In planning the meeting, decide on a reasonable time period to allot to the topic – that should include reasonable estimates for the length of time it will take for reporting, discussion, and decision-making.

The final column on this format is used to manage follow-up activities so that items do not simply continue on from meeting to meeting, and to develop the next meeting agenda.

A good meeting will also have a leader and a facilitator, although sometimes one person fills both roles.

The facilitator makes it possible for a group of people to communicate and to accomplish their task. A facilitator is neutral relative to content, but in charge of the process. He or she makes sure the meeting stays on topic, moves along at a reasonable pace, doesn’t get hung up for too long on one aspect of the topic under discussion, and makes sure the discussion doesn’t get “personal” and that tempers are kept in check.

The meeting leader is the person who calls the meeting, runs the meeting , and contributes content. In most offices, the physician is the meeting leader, although sometimes it is the office manager.

For some meetings you may decide to take a directive approach as leader; for others, you may decide to simply serve a consultative role as facilitator and let someone else run the meeting. Often that decision will depend on what the meeting is about. It’s also possible that in a meeting with more than one agenda item, you’ll switch between roles.

In our sample agenda item about copay collection, as leader you will have decided to accept debit cards and assign the follow-up to get enrolled with your bank to one of your staff members. You may find a consultative approach will work best to resolve the front-back teamwork around the item about check-in process, and therefore you’ll facilitate a discussion that is led by the front desk supervisor and nurse manager.

Successful meetings result in a more informed and engaged staff, and with documented action items that can be followed to the next meeting.

So stop cringing and schedule your next office meeting!

Rosemarie Nelson is a principal with the MGMA Health Care Consulting Group.

Originally published in MedPage Today. Visit MedPageToday.com for more practice management news.

Prev

Embracing different cultures in the service of the dying

July 30, 2011 Kevin 2
…
Next

MKSAP: 33-year-old man with stretch marks in his groin

July 30, 2011 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Primary Care, Specialist

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Embracing different cultures in the service of the dying
Next Post >
MKSAP: 33-year-old man with stretch marks in his groin

More by Rosemarie Nelson

  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    Increase patient and provider satisfaction by reducing phone messages

    Rosemarie Nelson
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    How to improve patient engagement

    Rosemarie Nelson
  • a desk with keyboard and ipad with the kevinmd logo

    What’s your plan for the transition to ICD-10?

    Rosemarie Nelson

More in Physician

  • Physicians have no autonomy. Here’s how to change that.

    Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH
  • The erosion of patient care

    Laura de la Torre, MD
  • Navigating adulthood in the digital age

    Eleanor Menzin, MD
  • The power of business knowledge for medical professionals

    Curtis G. Graham, MD
  • Using the language of art to create work-life balance

    Sarah Samaan, MD
  • Lively communication in the service industry

    Deepak Gupta, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m tired of being a distracted doctor

      Shiv Rao, MD | Tech
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Family support is pivotal in the treatment of schizophrenia

      Frank Chen, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Doctors and disability insurance: Protecting your income

      Amarish Dave, DO | Finance
    • Emergency care nightmare: the urgent need for experienced nurses

      Rachel Basham, RN, CCRN | Conditions
    • Physicians have no autonomy. Here’s how to change that.

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Understanding intersex health care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

CME Spotlights

From MedPage Today

Latest News

  • Report: Persistence of Gender Inequalities in Cancer Care, and a Call to Action
  • Cancer Risk in NAFLD Higher With Early Disease Onset
  • FDA Displeased With Companies Purposely Adding Sesame to More Foods
  • COVID Vax Appointment Cancelled? New Shot Rollout Faces Challenges
  • Medical Residents Receive 100+ Job Offer Contacts, Survey Shows

Meeting Coverage

  • New Schizophrenia Treatments Are Coming: Don't Panic
  • Loneliness Needs to Be Treated Like Any Other Health Condition, Researcher Suggests
  • Stopping Medical Misinformation Requires Early Detection
  • AI Has an Image Problem in Healthcare, Expert Says
  • Want Better Health Outcomes? Check Out What Other Countries Do
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m tired of being a distracted doctor

      Shiv Rao, MD | Tech
    • Inside the grueling life of a surgery intern

      Randall S. Fong, MD | Physician
    • The erosion of patient care

      Laura de la Torre, MD | Physician
    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Family support is pivotal in the treatment of schizophrenia

      Frank Chen, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Medical gaslighting: a growing challenge in today’s medical landscape

      Tami Burdick | Conditions
    • I want to be a doctor who can provide care for women: What states must I rule out for my medical education?

      Nandini Erodula | Education
    • Balancing opioid medication in chronic pain

      L. Joseph Parker, MD | Conditions
    • Reigniting after burnout: 3 physician stories

      Kim Downey, PT | Physician
    • I’m a doctor, and I almost died during childbirth

      Bayo Curry-Winchell, MD | Physician
    • Mourning the silent epidemic: the physician suicide crisis and suggestions for change

      Amna Shabbir, MD | Physician
  • Recent Posts

    • Transforming primary care for physician well-being [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • COVID-19 unleashed an ongoing crisis of delirium in hospitals

      Christina Reppas-Rindlisbacher, MD, Nathan Stall, MD, and Paula Rochon, MD | Conditions
    • Doctors and disability insurance: Protecting your income

      Amarish Dave, DO | Finance
    • Emergency care nightmare: the urgent need for experienced nurses

      Rachel Basham, RN, CCRN | Conditions
    • Physicians have no autonomy. Here’s how to change that.

      Diane W. Shannon, MD, MPH | Physician
    • Understanding intersex health care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...