Staffing questions?

[chrome surfer]

How firm does the om need to be with co-workers who are either on probations or still in training? Yes we are documenting. You see the receptionist is great as long as she is talking and patients love her helpfulness. I feel less talk more action.

What about the 40 yo woman who cries because she feels she is over worked but others can do the same work in less time or talks to the dr about how everyone is not being fair to her- all other staff members are picking on her.

How much socialization/friendliness should there be at the office? What about after office hours?

Trying to settle some office debates.

Yvette

[chip anderson]

Insoluable problem as long as you hire women.

[RA]

Nice Chip. Lay off the neutralizer, it's killing your brain cells. btw, it's insoluble.


Anyway, Yvette your concerns are an everyday reality for many. Here's a good article to get you started. There are many resources you can use to get what you want out of your employees.

http://www.livescience.com/humanbiol...xic_bully.html

You'll have better luck just searching the internet than on Opti(hiccup)board;)

[Jacqui]

You'll have better luck just searching the internet than on Opti(hiccup)board;)

You may want to contact GOS Queen, she is a member and HR manager of a large MD practice.

P.S. I agree, someone has had way too much neutralizer.

[gemstone]

No one wants to work with a 45 + year old person. Line up a new person, younger , prettier, CHEAPER! Say it's a temp to hire spot and pay for no benefits. Then tell the old hag shes been downsized. Who gives a spit if she has a hard time finding a job. Just business. It's got to be legal. It happend to my wife.

[Judy Canty]

:drop: :drop: :drop:

[Snitgirl]

No one wants to work with a 45 + year old person. Line up a new person, younger , prettier, CHEAPER! Say it's a temp to hire spot and pay for no benefits. Then tell the old hag shes been downsized. Who gives a spit if she has a hard time finding a job. Just business. It's got to be legal. It happend to my wife.

You must be speaking for yourself when you say, NO ONE...

[gemstone]

Yep! My wife. An MDs office. She'd been there 8 years. Just got too old.

[gemstone]

She finally got a job. She starts the 12th next month. She is skilled as a non licensed optician appointment person and check out. She knows how to get the payments from the ins co.s. She has not worked since Nov.

[Happylady]

Yep! My wife. An MDs office. She'd been there 8 years. Just got too old.

I'm sorry this happened to your wife. Not all places feel this way. I hope her new job works out great, it might be the best thing that could happen to her.

[Happylady]

Anyway, Yvette your concerns are an everyday reality for many. Here's a good article to get you started. There are many resources you can use to get what you want out of your employees.

http://www.livescience.com/humanbiol...xic_bully.html

You'll have better luck just searching the internet than on Opti(hiccup)board;)

What happens when the bad apple sucks up to the boss to the extent that the boss thinks this person is wonderful? The boss ends up believing what the bad apple says rather then the honest hard working people. I have seen this happen more then once. Generally the person is found out but it can a long time.

[cocoisland58]

What happens when the bad apple sucks up to the boss to the extent that the boss thinks this person is wonderful? The boss ends up believing what the bad apple says rather then the honest hard working people. I have seen this happen more then once. Generally the person is found out but it can a long time.

In this situation have patience and let this person know without actually saying so that you are on to them.

[cocoisland58]

How firm does the om need to be with co-workers who are either on probations or still in training? Yes we are documenting. You see the receptionist is great as long as she is talking and patients love her helpfulness. I feel less talk more action.

What about the 40 yo woman who cries because she feels she is over worked but others can do the same work in less time or talks to the dr about how everyone is not being fair to her- all other staff members are picking on her.

How much socialization/friendliness should there be at the office? What about after office hours?

Trying to settle some office debates.

Yvette

As an office manager I can tell you what I do.

My young, bubbly, quite chatty and semi-distracted receptionist is a gem. The patients love her and I use a daily list and firm but gentle reminders to keep her on track. She'll mature. I also do reviews one on one. First praise and then constructive criticism.

As for the whiner. I don't care what age group this one falls into, she goes. There is no room in a productive and functionally harmonious office for this behavior.

Socializing is up to the individual employees. Generally we all like each other just fine but after eight hours together, we all just want to go home. There is of course the obligatory holiday party.

[Agnitio]

Socializing is fine during down time ie no patients waiting and the optoms seeing patients but keep it quiet....those walls are thin!

I work my tail off for the majority of my shift and wish the prac manager was in the work room during the busy times to hear the staff gossip while they are making adjustments to frames and repairs. the patients can hear everything they are saying.

if in the workroom during these times i will utter a "shhhh" but it goes unheard most of the time.

it is a medical office and the proper behaviour must be adheard to.

sure there is time with the patients where you have a laugh and others may join in but if i was a customer i would hate to hear the staff having a laugh while i was waiting for an item i'd just paid $700 for.

myself being a male has a voice which carries more than others and stands out a lot more than the other females to the prac managert but when the work is on the only conversation is work related.

the only time for socializing is during a break period in an area that no px's can hear or during down time when no one is waiting.

i think that anything else is totally unprofessional and will only result in a loss of business

also i too know about the suck ups that make mistakes. they think they are gold, the boss thinks they are gold...but everyone else know they are tarnished tin.

only recently one of the above was thought to be supervisor material due to her skills. i will admit shes good at simple tasks with very below average errors but everyone knew she couldn't work under pressure....too fragile....until recently while training a new receptionist whos been a dispenser for 10 years she found it too hard...i smiled i must admit at the managers error in judgment.

a bit of a vent and a bit of personal opinion but the bottom line is, if they aren't doing the job to your satisfaction, maintaining the company image you wish project, or interfering with productivity all on a continuing basis...they go and they go quickly as these are all behaviours that will become common with all staff.

what ever happened to the saying:

"If you get paid $5 an hour do $7 an hour work"

it almost seems reversed nowadays....at least here

[GOS_Queen]

You may want to contact GOS Queen, she is a member and HR manager of a large MD practice.

Jacqui - you flatter me - actually, I have been taking HR classes. However, while it is my dream to be the HR manager one day, I am merely a lowly paper shuffler working in the billing office (and I love every stinking minute of it! :cheers: )

FWIW, Jubilee, (Cassandra) is working towards her masters in HR ~ she'd be an awesome person to consult!

As far as the original question is concerned, IMHO:

1) I think every business should have a manual that outlines policy and proceedures

2) Every employee should receive a job description upon hire

3) Unacceptable behavior should never be a "surprise" during a review - there should be discussions along the way, during the year, with a clearly documented paper trail.

4) IMHO, the Dr's (OD's or MD's) should leave the management of the office to the office manager. The office manager should never be a wife or other relation to the Dr. Preferably, the office manager should have some college classes in management/supervision. If the person does not, the Dr should make the investment in getting the person some training (there are some great short term programs thru community colleges and even some great one day programs).

[Jacqui]

Jacqui - you flatter me

You're welcome :cheers:

[RA]

1) I think every business should have a manual that outlines policy and proceedures

That's if the policies are actually enforced.

Also, what about an office where an air of entitlement has been created, How would one get away from that?

[cocoisland58]

Also, what about an office where an air of entitlement has been created, How would one get away from that?

Be more specific or give us an example please.

[RA]

It's hard to say. It's actually not an issue of mine but it seems to be on the medical side. Staff do the bare minimum for their job description and don't pitch in to help someone else. ex. "I'm scheduled for phones today, I can't help you w/ filing." Also, they get an hour paid lunch. And if we have an office provided luncheon where they get to leave afterward at say 3:00, everyone still takes that hour.
I'm sure there are plenty more examples, but I don't get involoved, only listen to venting, smile and nod and take care of the Optical.

[Jubilee]

That's if the policies are actually enforced.

Also, what about an office where an air of entitlement has been created, How would one get away from that?

In order to start the process, everyone needs to be on the "same page." Having the policies and procedures written down, and having an associate handbook to sign which outlines what is expected in terms of performance from the associate and in return from the employer will go a long way to making sure both sides are protected. The handbook can be used to document how an associate didn't follow the rules, and thus eligible for termination without a right to unemployment paid by the firm, and if the employer failed to uphold their end, the associate has something in writing to take up with the appropriate agency or to bring to court.

There are many places online that give you the basic structure of writting such a document. I personally would recommend having both a Policy and Procedure manual (for training and reference purposes) and an Associate Handbook outlining the terms of employment, dress, attendance, vacation policy, emergency plan, etc. Make sure the job description is a part of these books. The job description is where you state what their job entails, including secondary tasks, and collaboration (i.e. Teamwork on other tasks)

As for an associate who has developed a sense of "entitlement" you can approach the situation a couple of different ways. The lack of flexibility to help others or to assume a task not "Assigned" can be rectified by the introduction of either a new or revised job description. Have a meeting to present the materials and tell the staff straight up what is expected. So while some days it does seem that the phone is ringing constantly, often times there are periods of inactivity. So assigning secondary duties, such as filing during the down time, or other tasks such as creating letters, recall, etc can and will be expected to occur in these periods. We don't pay you to sit around doing nothing! Adding a line to the job description that basically states "and any tasks the office manager or owner sees fit to assign..." leaves the door wide open to add those unforseen items as well.

If the associate believes the are entitled to something, whether it is preferential treatment, etc. then a discussion needs to occur. Do they feel this way cause they were promised these things? (ie when they were hired was something negotiated.. such as Saturdays off, no late nights, etc) Is there a physical or mental disability or condition that makes the task difficult or impossible to do? You want to make sure that the problem is an attitude one and has no legal or contractual basis before putting the hammer down.

If it is indeed a case of " I'm the best so I should get what I want.." then the associate needs to be pulled aside and told their attitude is a problem and teamwork is needed. If it is causing animosity in the ranks, and dividing the staff, then that person needs to either change or be let go. Just make sure you have your documentation on what was said during your counsellings and that they were forewarned that if things didn't change, they could be terminated. If it is something that is this much of an issue, communication should be in writing, outlining the problem behavior, which policy is violates, and what is specifically expected to change by when. Have them sign a copy after you present it, and let them comment on it as well. Then make copies for you both. That way there is no excuses.

Cassandra

[cocoisland58]

It's hard to say. It's actually not an issue of mine but it seems to be on the medical side. Staff do the bare minimum for their job description and don't pitch in to help someone else. ex. "I'm scheduled for phones today, I can't help you w/ filing." Also, they get an hour paid lunch. And if we have an office provided luncheon where they get to leave afterward at say 3:00, everyone still takes that hour.
I'm sure there are plenty more examples, but I don't get involoved, only listen to venting, smile and nod and take care of the Optical.

This is an issue of "bad parenting" from the beginning. Hard to fix once it gets out of hand unless a new manager steps in that is able to rectify the situation. Seems to me if the person in charge doesn't care or has lost authority than the "kids" are going to act up all they can.

[EyeFitWell]

Insoluable problem as long as you hire women.

Chip,
I've been your humble admirer on this board for a while now, but I must dissagree with you here.
I'm a young woman, and I've never cried on the job nor been less productive than men. The fact is, men and women all have their strengths and weaknesses, the trick is to use that to your advantage.
As a woman is this field, sometimes I have to work really hard to proove myself to my employer and the patients. Other times, it works in my favor!;)

[EyeFitWell]

As for the origional question, the girl who's too chatty just needs to be gently, privately, told that. Sometimes the pt is the one who keeps you locked in the conversation, been there more than once. Perhaps she feels it would be rude to get back to her work. Maybe she just doesn't realize that it's more important she work than chat it up with patients.

As for the woman who cries b/c she's "overworked" again, I would say, privately it needs to be discussed. I know from personal experience how stress can really get to you (I work 60 hours/week and I'm in school FT, and I just got married...it's a lot to handle sometimes) but business is business! When I'm at work, my personal life isn't even in the picture. She needs to be told gently that the bottom line is, "I pay you X to do Y. No one is keeping you here if it's too much for you, and likewise, I will not keep you here if you cannot do Y" Period. Sometimes, the employer has unrealistic expectations, sometimes an employee has a 'poor me' attitude. Both are unfortunate, and bound to have consequences in how the business runs. If you make this clear to her, and give her concrete ways to gague how much work is apropriate in the work day, then you have done your part. On the other side, if no one can live up to this expectation, reevaluate it!

Never underestimate the value of clear, open, communication!