Question: I am trying to develop a policy and procedure manual to follow for my aesthetically-oriented office. I would like a copy of what responsibilities are for an office manager, medical assistants, and front-desk staff. When do I do evaluations or give raises? Am I to follow the standard business guidelines or do medical practices have specific rules? Does it matter what state I am in?
Answer: The Medical Group Management Association sells a sample policy manual that will get you started. Look for it on the. It’s generic so you can customize to your state needs. That said, most states don’t have rules about the things you’ve asked about. More generally, you should set policies that fit your practice.
So generic policies for the front desk might not include some of what you need in a more aesthetically-oriented practice. Think of what the front desk would ideally do and put that in the description. Most practices do annual reviews but have more regular, informal conversations with employees. Most discuss raises annually and I’d suggest they be based on performance — a preset expectation defined in writing — not simply having produced another year of mediocre work.
Upon successfully completing this chapter, you will be able to:. Spell and define the key terms. Describe what is meant by organizational structure. List seven responsibilities of the medical office manager. Explain the five staffing issues that a medical office manager will be responsible for handling. List the types of policies and procedures that should be included in a medical office's policy and procedures manual. List five types of promotional materials that a medical office may dist.
The medical office manager must be multiskilled, multitalented, and able to prioritize a variety of issues, juggle responsibilities, and communicate effectively with patients, staff, and physicians. In some settings, the medical office manager may be referred to as the business manager. Managers may be nurses, medical assistants, or administrative support personnel. Staff meeting should be scheduled at a predictable frequency and time to allow the staff to plan. Staff meetings should never be canceled except in a true emergency. Agendas should be created prior to the meeting and posted for staff review. Staff meeting should be conducted in a private area out of patient's sight and hearing.
All interruptions, except for emergencies, should be avoided. The personnel manual should clearly state the attendance policy for staff meetings. In addition, some offices include attendance as a duty in each employee's job description. To improve attendance at staff meetings, consider serving food or including an educational presentation.
Involve staff as much as possible when setting the meeting agenda. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the workplace. To ensure that hiring practices are fair and nondiscriminatory, be careful and consistent in the types of questions asked in an interview. You You may ask work related questions like, 'Are you proficient in typing?' Avoid questions that might give the appearance of discrimination. You may not ask applicants their age, race, religion, or marital status.
You cannot ask about children, daycare, or plans for future children. Only after creating or reviewing an existing job description can you begin the process of interviewing and hiring a new employee. All applicants should complete an application. State laws vary regarding the types of questions that can be asked on applications.
If your medical facility requires a criminal background check and drug testing, the form should include this information with a place for the applicant to give necessary permission with a signature. Any employee application form should be reviewed by legal counsel prior to its use. Before interviewing an applicant, prepare a list of questions. Under law, you are not permitted to ask about certain topics. During the interview, assess the applicants ability to do the following:.
Perform technical skills. Treat patients in a caring manner. Communicate in a professional yet friendly manner. Remain flexible Be consistent and fair when selecting the best candidate.
Having to terminate, or fire, an employee is never an easy or pleasant task. It is essential that policies regarding termination be followed precisely. All disciplinary actions must be clearly and objectively stated.
Terminating employees for unlawful reasons or failing to follow the organization's termination policy can result in lawsuits against you and the practice. Some reasons for termination include:. Excessive tardiness or absenteeism. Inappropriate dress or behavior.
Endangering patients. Lying or stealing.
Falsifying medical records or time sheets. Breaching patient confidentiality. Every business needs written rules and regulations to ensure its practices are within legal and ethical boundaries. Employees need written procedures to ensure consistency in the practices of the business.
It is the office manager's responsibility to coordinate the orientation and training of any new employee. Most organizations create a policy and procedures manual that is written, maintained, and regarded as one document. A policy is a statement regarding the organization's rules on a given topic. A procedure is a series of steps required to perform a given task. Policies and procedures must be written in a clear, concise, and understandable format. The medical office manager is often responsible for developing and distributing promotional literature for the practice. Examples of promotional materials are:.
Education pamphlets and booklets for patients. Be sure to use educational information that has been accredited or approved by an appropriate authority. Practice brochures. Newsletters.
Holiday cards. Birthday cards. Newspaper articles. Yellow pages. Direct mail. Business cards Follow these guidelines when creating promotional material:.
Double-check all spelling and grammar. Ensure accuracy. Use clear and specific language. Avoid abbreviations and complex medical terms. Use brightly colored materials. If you are using a commercial printer, be sure to review the proofs carefully before the final printing. A budget is a financial planning tool that helps an organization estimate its anticipated expenditures and revenues.
Budgeting has many purposes for an organization:. Forcing the manager and physician to plan. Causing managers and staff to become cost conscious. Promoting communication among staff and managers.
Helping the organization achieve a financial goal. The medical office generally has both an operating and a capital budget.
Operating budgets consist of all cost to run the office. Capital budget consists of the large outlays of money.
The medical office manager must keep this staff up-to-date on medical procedures, drugs and vaccines, insurance coding and billing regulations, and any other topics that promote good patient care. In addition to the topics, annual education is usually conducted on cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), infection control, and fire in electrical safety. Most allied health professionals are required to accumulate continuing education units (CEUs). As the medical office manager, you should select an educational topic for each month. In some offices, the educational topic is covered during the monthly staff meetings, whereas other offices have separate educational programs. In addition to formal education programs, there are other ways to keep your staff up-to-date. For instance, educational videos and DVDs can be rented or purchased for staff viewing; consider developing a post test to assess for comprehension.
Also, many professional magazines have continuing education articles many professional magazines have continuing education articles on various topics, usually accompanied by a post test. Finally, staff members should be sent to one or two seminars a year. Outside seminars help increase employee productivity, self-esteem, and retention. Doctors today face challenges that those of a generation ago never imagined.
Physicians are at risk for malpractice suits and must use sound practices to decrease this risk. Physicians need malpractice insurance to protect them from financial loss in the event of a successful lawsuit or settlement. Nurses also carry malpractice insurance, and many allied health professionals are now opting for coverage. As office manager, you should assess the coverage needs of your employees and investigate the possibility of a policy that would cover any employees who need it. Insurance is a large expense but one that a medical practice must incur.
Even in the safest settings, undesirable things can happened to patients. These events sometimes result from human error, or they may be idiopathic. Idiopathic means that something occurred for unknown reasons and was unavoidable. Incident report must be completed even if no injury resulted from an event. A few examples of situations requiring an incident report are:. All medication errors. All patient, visitor, and employee falls.
Drawing blood from a wrong patient. Mislabeling of blood tubes or specimen. Incorrect surgical instruments counts following surgery. Employee needlesticks.
Workers' compensation injuries The rule of thumb is, when in doubt, always complete it incident report. Although every agency has its own form, the following data are always included in an incident report:. Name, address, and phone number of the injured party. Date of birth and sex of the injured party. Date, time, and location of the incident.
Brief description of the incident and what was done to correct it. Any diagnostic procedures or treatments that were needed. Patient examination findings. Names and addresses of witnesses. Signature and title of person completing the form. Physician's and or supervisor's signature as per policy. When completing an incident report, follow these guidelines: 1.
State only the facts. Do not draw conclusions or summarize the event.
Write legibly and sign your name legibly. Be sure to include your title. Complete the form in a timely fashion. In general, incident reports should be completed within 24 hours of the event. Do not leave blank spaces on the form. If a particular section of the report does not apply, write not applicable.
Never photocopy and incident report for your own personal record. Never place the incident report in the patient's chart. Never document in the patients chart that an incident report was completed. Only document the event in the patients chart. By writing in the medical record that an incident report was completed, that opens the potential for lawyers to subpoena the incident report, should there be a lawsuit. After incident reports are completed, they are reviewed and tracked to highlight specific patterns.
The resulting statistical data can be used to identify problem areas, which can be corrected through quality improvement programs. Examples of statistical data that can be found in incident reports include:. Particular days of the week when most negative events happened. Most common area for patient falls. Medications that are routinely given incorrectly.
The age group most likely to have problems. Incident reports should be kept in a special file in the manager's office. One of the most challenging problems for risk managers is to prevent noncompliance with regulatory agencies. Numerous agencies regulate health care settings, and these rules and regulations change frequently. You can stay up-to-date with new changes by reading newsletters from these organizations, attending the state and local professional meetings, and frequently visiting various professional websites. Every state has a website that will link you to legislative action. Read these regularly.
Each office should have legal counsel who can assist in interpreting legal issues. The Joint Commission is a private agency that sets health care standards and evaluates an organization's implementation of those standards for health care settings. The Joint Commission surveys these centers and then assigns them an accreditation title. A survey is an on-site evaluation of the organization's facility and policies.
Participation in The Joint Commission is voluntary for health care organizations; without accreditation, however, the health care organization may not be eligible to participate in particular federal and state funded programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid. The size and complexity of an organization's quality improvement program depends on the organization's particular needs. A few examples of quality issues that can be monitored in the physician offices are:. Patient waiting times. Unplanned returned patient visits for the same ailment or illness.
Misdiagnosed illnesses that are detected by another partner in the practice. Patient or family complaints. Timely follow-up telephone calls to patients. Patient falls in physician's office or office building. Mislabeled specimens sent to the laboratory. Blood specimens that are coagulated or contaminated.
All organizations can improve their delivery of patient care. Suggestions for improving care can come from many resources, including the following:. Office managers.
Physicians. Other employees. Patients.
Incident report trending The person responsible for quality improvement in the medical office reviews all quality improvement problems or potential problems and selects the one to be addressed first. Problems given top priority are those that are high (risk most likely to occur) and those that are most likely to cause injury to patients, family members, or employees. After implementation, the solution must be evaluated to determine whether it worked and, if so, how well. Quality improvement monitoring plans have three elements:. Source of monitoring, that is, where the numerical data will be obtained.
Frequency of monitoring, that is, how often the data will be monitored and tallied. Person responsible for monitoring, that is, who collects the data and presents the results in graphic form, allowing for easy comparison of data from before and after implementation of the solution.
CLINIC POLICY AND PROCEDURES MANUAL. 1. DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY FACULTY OF DENTISTRY CLINIC POLICY AND PROCEDURES MANUAL (also see the Schedule of Fees for Dental Services and the Infection Control Manual for other clinic policies) 2009 -2010 Version - August 28, 2009 Compiled by The Office of the Assistant Dean, Clinics, August 2009 THIS MANUAL IS FOR THE SOLE USE OF THE DALHOUSIE DENTAL CLINIC FACULTY, STAFF AND STUDENTS.
Suggestions for improvements are always welcome. Please pass them on to the Assistant Dean, Clinics office, Level 1, Room 1210. Clinic Manager Available at (click on 'Faculty Policies and Manuals' or you can get a printed copy from the Clinical Affairs Office. 2.
TABLE OF CONTENTS Mission Statement. 7 Important Telephone Numbers. 9 Web Sites. 10 Fire and Emergency Evacuation Protocol. 11 General.
11 Alarm System. 11 Exits. 11 Evacuation. 11 Sedated, Wheelchair or Physically Challenged Patients. 12 Patients Under Sedation.
12 Responsibilities. 12 Level I (Dental Assistants, Students, Administrative Staff - Clinical Affairs Office). 12 Level II (Dental Assistants, Students, Receptionists - Patient Services). 12 Responsibilities of Teachers and Researchers. 13 Fire Drills.
13 Re-Entry after an Emergency Evacuation or Fire Drill. 13 Floor Plans - Level 1 to 5. 14 SECTION ONE - RESPONSIBILITIES, QUALITY ASSURANCE, PATIENT RIGHTS AND PROFESSIONALISM.
19 Clinic Fees. 21 Mandatory Criminal Record Check and Child Abuse Registry Check. 22 Student Responsibilities. 23 Suspension of Privileges. 23 Cell phones, pagers, iPods etc.
23 Chart Audit Quality Assurance. 24 Chart Audit.
24 Purpose of Audit. 24 Student/Chart Selection. 24 D3212/4212. 24 Policy on Students and Student Applicants with Infectious Diseases. 25 Faculty Responsibilities (includes Cell phones, pagers, iPods etc.; CPR & Defibrillator Training). 26 Staff Responsibilities (includes Cell phones, pagers, iPods etc.; CPR & Defibrillator Training).
28 Patient Responsibilities (includes Infected Patient). 30 Patient Rights. 31 Confidentiality of Patient Information - Faculty Policy 2009-2010.
32 Professionalism for Faculty, Staff and Students. 34 Student Code of Professional Conduct. 35 Dalhousie Discrimination and Harassment Policy. 37 SECTION TWO - GENERAL CLINIC INFORMATION AND POLICIES.
ACCESS TO DENTAL BUILDING, STUDENT LABS AND STUDY ROOMS. ACCESS TO THE DENTAL CLINIC LEVELS 1 AND 2.
ACCESS TO CLINIC AREAS FOR EXTRA PRECLINICAL PRACTICE. ACCESS TO SEMINAR ROOMS IN CLINIC AREAS LEVEL 1 AND 2. ALCOHOL RULES. SECURITY INFORMATION.
CLINIC CANCELLATION POLICY. DRESS CODE. CLINIC JACKETS AND SCRUB PANTS. STUDENT MAILBOXES, VOICE MAIL, E-MAIL AND LOCKERS.
STUDENT YEAR END CLEARANCE. STUDENT FEES - MANDATORY (see Faculty of Dentistry Calendar). CLINIC SUPPLIES AND LOCATION OVERVIEW. STUDENT SPECIAL CLINIC ASSIGNMENTS AND ROTATIONS. CHILDREN IN CLINIC (WHO DO NOT HAVE AN APPOINTMENT). CHILD ABUSE.
52 3. What is the Law Regarding Child Abuse?.
52 Responsibilities of Faculty Supervisors and Students. 52 What is Child Abuse?. 52 Where to make a report. 53 SECTION THREE - CLINIC POLICIES AND PROTOCOLS. 55 PART 1 - CLINIC - GENERAL.
ACCESS TO CLINIC SUPPLIES AFTER 4:15 PM DAILY. PERSONAL PROPERTY.
CLINIC ATTENDANCE/ABSENCE. STUDENT CLINIC SUPERVISION. STUDENT PATIENT CARE RESPONSIBILITIES UNTIL GRADUATION. STUDENT RELATIONSHIPS WITH PATIENTS. APPOINTMENT PROCEDURES - DENTAL STUDENTS.
60 PART 2 - GENERAL PATIENT INFORMATION (AXIUM, PATIENT CHARTS ETC.). CLINIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (AXIUM) BOOKINGS/APPOINTMENTS. PATIENT CHARTS/DOCUMENTATION. CONSULTATION RESULTS. MEDICAL HISTORY. TREATMENT PLANS.
PATIENT CONSENT TO TREATMENT. 64 PART 3 - CLINICAL PATIENT INFORMATION (REFERRALS, CATEGORIES ETC.). PATIENTS REFERRED TO PRIVATE PRACTICES. 64 Treatment Too Complex. 65 Continuance, Expedition, Correction or Repeat of Treatment. PATIENTS REFERRED BY PRIVATE PRACTICES.
65 Limited Treatment Patients. 65 Comprehensive Treatment Patients. 66 Implant Maintenance Patients.
66 Orthodontic Maintenance Patients. PATIENT CLASSIFICATION - MEDICAL. MEDICAL CONSULTATIONS. 67 PART 4 - MEDICAL EMERGENCIES. Medical Emergencies During Regular Clinic Hours (Chart). Emergency Response Carts.
Medical Emergencies After Regular Clinic Hours. 69 PART 5 - DENTAL EMERGENCIES. Emergency Care During Regular Clinic Hours. Emergency Care after regular clinic hours and during clinic closures. 71 After Hours Dental Emergency Coverage (flow chart). 72 PART 6 - SAFETY AND ASEPSIS PROCEDURES.
CUBICLES - HOUSEKEEPING AND INFECTION CONTROL. REMOVAL OF RUBBER DAMS ETC. PRIOR TO PATIENT LEAVING CLINIC AREA. IMMUNOCOMPROMISED PATIENTS. MANAGEMENT OF LATEX-SENSITIVE PATIENTS. PREVENTION OF INFECTIVE ENDOCARDITIS.
ANTIBIOTIC PROPHYLAXIS FOR PATIENTS WITH TOTAL JOINT REPLACMENT. 75 POSITION STATEMENT ON THE MANAGEMENT OF DENTAL PATIENTS WITH TOTAL JOINT REPLACEMENTS (AUG 2009). 75 4. MEDICAL REFERRAL FORM - Joint Replacement Consult Form.
76 RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE AMERICAN DENTAL ASSOCIATION AND AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ORTHOPAEDIC SURGEONS (July 2003). PRESCRIPTION WRITING AND MEDICATION DISPENSING. SEDATION OF PATIENTS. NEEDLESTICK, PUNCTURE WOUND POLICY. MANAGEMENT OF EXTRACTED TEETH. STAFF INOCULATIONS.
INFLUENZA VACCINATION PROGRAM. INFECTION CONTROL CHECKLIST FOR DENTAL CUBICLES. INFECTION CONTROL MONITORING (Clinic Protocol/Infection Control Breech Form). MANAGEMENT OF PATIENTS WITH HERPETIC LESIONS. 80 Oral Health Care Workers with Herpetic Whitlow. STERILIZATION PROCEDURES. 81 PART 7 - RADIOGRAPHIC POLICIES FOR DALHOUSIE DENTAL CLINIC.
81 Radiology Labs - Preclinical Training. 82 Duplication of Radiographs.
82 Student Darkroom and Portable Processors. 83 PART 8 - DENTAL EQUIPMENT - CARE AND MAINTENANCE. 83 PART 9 - OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH POLICIES.
Chemical Spill Instructions. Recommended Practices for Potentially Hazardous Materials Instruments and Equipment. Eye Protection. Scent –Free Policy. Waste Disposal (includes Chemical and Biomedical Wastes).
Minor Injuries/Illness (Faculty, Staff, Students and Building Visitors. Personnel Pre-requisites (see Infection Control Manual). Management of Needlestick and Mucous Membrane Exposures.
88 PART 10 - PROCESSING LABORATORY ORDERS (DENTAL CLINICAL SCIENCES REQUIREMENTS). FINISHING, RUBBER WHEELING AND POLISHING PFM AND CAST GOLD RESTORATIONS.
DUAL ARCH IMPRESSION LAB/CLINICAL PROTOCOL. CUSTOM TRAY FABRICATION. PATIENT ACCEPTABILITY. CHECK STEPS FOR PATIENT TREATMENT IN ALL CLINICS. FABRICATION OF ORTHODONTIC RETAINERS. REPLACEMENT/REPAIR POLICY FOR PROSTHESIS/DEVICES.
MANAGEMENT OF CHILDREN AT DALHOUSIE DENTAL CLINIC. 93 PART 11 - PROCESSING LABORATORY ORDERS (DENTAL LABORATORY REQUIREMENTS). 93 PART 12 - ORAL PATHOLOGY POLICIES AND PROCEDURES (CONSULTS, BIOPSIES ETC.). 98 Consultation. 98 Biopsies, Cytology Smears and Cultures. 98 Collection of Biopsies, Cytology Smears and Microbiology Culture Swabs.
98 PART 13 - DISPENSARY GUIDELINES. 99 PART 14 - NEW CLINICAL AND PRECLINICAL SUPPLIES AND EQUIPMENT. 101 SECTION FOUR - SPECIFIC CLINIC SUPPORT UNITS. 103 5.
BUILDING SERVICES UNIT. 105 CENTRAL STERILIZATION UNIT (CSU). 106 CLINIC INFORMATION SYSTEM SERVICES UNIT (axiUm). 108 CLINICAL SERVICES (Includes Dental Assistants, Dispensary and Radiology Units). 109 DENTAL LAB. 112 DENTAL STORES UNIT. 113 PATIENT SERVICES UNIT.
115 PRECLINICAL LAB SERVICES. 120 TECHNICAL SERVICES UNIT (Clinic and Lab Equipment/General Maintenance). 121 6. MISSION STATEMENT The mission of the Dalhousie University Dental Clinic is to provide quality preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic services for our patients by dental and dental hygiene students during supervised educational clinics. 7. 8. IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS (See the Table of Contents for more information) EMERGENCY (fire / electrical failure / chemical spill / flood) Please do not call 911.
(494) 4109 NOTE: no money needed at Campus pay phones. MEDICAL EMERGENCY Please do not call 911 A. Patients, staff, faculty, or students in Dental Cubicles Level 1 and 2 - Complete Ambulance Request form and bring to Patient Services. If Patient Services is closed use clinic phone, call 4109 and give location and details.
(494) 4109 B. Anywhere else in building call 4109 and give location and details.
Policies Of A Company
(494) 4109 If possible delegate someone nearby to go to the Main Building Entrance to meet Security and ambulance and direct them to the patient. POLICE / SECURITY / THEFT / HARASSMENT.
Free Policies And Procedures Manual
(494) 6400 NOTE: no money needed at Campus pay phones. OFFICE OF THE DEAN (DENTISTRY). (494) 2824 (Has answering machine for messages) DENTAL CLINIC - Patient inquiries, appointments, records, accounts. (494) 2101 STUDENT VOICE MAIL (each DDS3, DDS4, QP1, QP2 and DH2 Student has a personal extension # provided by Patient Services). (494) 1000 plus ext # AFTER HOURS DENTAL EMERGENCIES (Answering Service). (494) 2101 (5:00 - 9:00 p.m. Only on Thursdays and Fridays; 9:00 am - 6:00 p.m.
Weekends and holidays) ASSISTANT DEAN, CLINICS (DENTISTRY) (Has voice mail for messages). (494) 1681 FAX machine number. (494) 1757 BUILDING SERVICES (Building maintenance, lockers, keys, elevators, office supplies, phones, computers, water leaks/floods etc.).
(494) 5199 CARLETON LAB - laptop and general faculty computer support. (494) 6560 CLINIC MANAGER (Has voice mail for messages). (494) 1681 FAX machine number. (494) 1757 FACULTY PRACTICE (Email - [email protected]).
(494) 3868 DR. McLEAN CONTINUING EDUCATION CENTRE. (494) 6336 STUDENT AFFAIRS - counseling, advice; has answering machine.
(494) 2876 STUDENT HEALTH - injuries (non-emergency and needle-stick). (494) 2171 SEE: Minor Injuries/Illness If possible see the Clinic Nurse (Room 1311) in Oral Surgery before going to Student Health or the hospital. Obtain an Incident Report Form and complete and deliver to the Clinical Affairs office (Room 1210) as soon as possible after the incident. 9.
Policies And Procedures Manual
WEB SITES FACULTY OF DENTISTRY.
The Sample Medical Office Policy Procedure Template The free sample policy and procedure manual for a medical office will show you the format, writing style and content of the medical office procedure manual. Submit the sample form to download a MS Word file. The Medical Office Policies Procedures Manual The sample doctors office policy procedure template is from the, which includes:. 9 prewritten medical practice policy procedure templates. 9 accompanying medical office forms (including HIPPA). 9 Example.
1 Medical Office Employee Handbook. 1 Medical Office Organization Chart. 1 Medical office Policy Manual preparation guide.
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