Guest guest Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I am beginning the process of hiring a receptionist/office manager for our new clinic. Having never done this before, I am finding it quite overwhelming. I am wondering if I might be able to pick up some pointers from folks on the list who have gone through this process. A few questions (I realize some of the answers are dependent on what kind of practice I have, but I am looking for some general thoughts) - What are the most important personal qualities in an applicant? How about specific skills? What are red-flags? Is there a good resource out there on how to conduct interviews? Any other essential info for me to know? Thanks for your help- Adam Schreiber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 3, 2009 Report Share Posted June 3, 2009 Well Congratulations! Hiring a receptionist will definately make things easier at your clinic and will inevitably grow your practice. I hired one last year and had to fire her this year. You will learn a lot as you go along. Being a boss is much different than being a practitioner. I prefer the latter, however the former is all part of the deal if this is the path you take. Here are some suggestions: -Take your time. The right person will make your practice grow. The wrong one will break it. -They should be personable but also detail oriented, organized, and capable of multi-tasking. They should also be good with numbers, and familiar with your clinic's data keeping software. I swear, the larger my practice gets, the more important accurate record keeping becomes! -They should be someone that works very well independently. Trust me, you are hiring them to take care of the work that you don't want to deal with. You should be able to delegate the task and then forget about it. It's no fun to pay them to do their job and then finding out later it wasn't done or having to stay on top of them to ensure it gets done. -Have a clear employee policy and agreement. -Communicate expectations clearly and in writing. -Have them sign all communications indicating they are aware of the policy and procedure. You should do this so that if they don't work out, you can easily let them go. I had to learn this the hard way! Firing them was the worst thing I ever had to do. The person I have now, who is working out great, was discovered on my state's employment security website. On this website people post their resumes and one can search them. I just typed in " medical " " insurance " " reception " and viola! She appeared. She had worked in a chiro office before and also in some insurance companies. It worked out much better than before when I advertised and received way too many resumes and not very many qualified applicants. I wish you the best of luck! Sincerely, Benjamin Chang Chinese Medicine , " Adam Schreiber " <schreib wrote: > > I am beginning the process of hiring a receptionist/office manager for our new clinic. Having never done this before, I am finding it quite overwhelming. I am wondering if I might be able to pick up some pointers from folks on the list who have gone through this process. A few questions (I realize some of the answers are dependent on what kind of practice I have, but I am looking for some general thoughts) - > > What are the most important personal qualities in an applicant? How about specific skills? > What are red-flags? > Is there a good resource out there on how to conduct interviews? > Any other essential info for me to know? > > > Thanks for your help- > Adam Schreiber > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 3, 2009 Report Share Posted June 3, 2009 You want to keep it in the back of your mind that hiring involves legal issues, the most important ones are: 1. Do NOT discuss anything that is unrelated to performance in the interview, including children, child care, etc, etc. 2. If you do NOT hire someone, and they ask why, do not give a reason, beside " The chosen person was the best match for the team. " 3. Make sure they are HIPPA trained. I had one situation where a women referred her girl friend and then asked how she was doing with the treatments, and my receptionist started to say things that were way out of line. I often role play a bit in the interview, " How would you handle this.... " 4. When you are dissatisfied and consider letting them go, let them know in writing a specific instant, such as, you were late on Tuesday, this is a reason for dismissal. Although you can legally let people go without cause they can claim discrimination, e.g.. you fired them because they were too old and that is evident in the fact that you now have hired a younger person. 5. If you have an employee, NEVER do anything that is in a gray area, such as taking cash without depositing it, filing additional insurance codes, keeping 2 sets of books, etc. Dissatisfied employees are one of the main resources for the IRS! 6. You either have to review everything or act as if you did. An acupuncturist in my town just found out that his receptionist pocketed all the cash that clients paid, and them retroactively deleted the appointments from the computerized appointment book, effectively making an audit almost impossible. It was pure chance that he noticed it. I usually told my receptionists that they can leave an hour early on Friday, and that I needed to review all books before making the deposit, at least they have the sense of being supervised. Regards, Angela Pfaffenberger, Ph.D. angelapfa www.InnerhealthSalem.com Phone: 503 364 3022 - Adam Schreiber Chinese Medicine Thursday, May 28, 2009 3:56 PM Hiring Receptionist I am beginning the process of hiring a receptionist/office manager for our new clinic. Having never done this before, I am finding it quite overwhelming. I am wondering if I might be able to pick up some pointers from folks on the list who have gone through this process. A few questions (I realize some of the answers are dependent on what kind of practice I have, but I am looking for some general thoughts) - What are the most important personal qualities in an applicant? How about specific skills? What are red-flags? Is there a good resource out there on how to conduct interviews? Any other essential info for me to know? Thanks for your help- Adam Schreiber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 4, 2009 Report Share Posted June 4, 2009 Thank you Benjamin and Angela - very helpful feedback. Exactly the type of info I was looking for. Cheers! Adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 5, 2009 Report Share Posted June 5, 2009 I agree, thanks for this information. I am the receptionist, janitor, procurement, bookeeper, etc. I think I do all this because of the unkown of hiring someone. Thanks for your experience with this. Anne C. Crowley, L.Ac., Dipl.Ac. www.LaPlataAcupuncture.com - " Adam Schreiber " <schreib " Traditional " <Chinese Medicine > Wednesday, June 3, 2009 9:21:27 PM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Re:  Hiring Receptionist Thank you Benjamin and Angela - very helpful feedback. Exactly the type of info I was looking for. Cheers! Adam Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 6, 2009 Report Share Posted June 6, 2009 Advise given so far is good, but one more thing. My first hire passed 3 interviews. She also hid many personal problems from us and told us she was a non-smoker. When we did finally decide she was the best choice for the job, we decided there was to be a trial basis. It was a good thing! We discovered her many issues and she forgot to desmell herself before coming back to work one afternoon. She also became very angry. When we told her not to come back, she informed us that she was not planning on coming back anyway. Since the hiring was on a trial basis, there was no recourse. I will also add that in the 2 weeks she was with me, my client load reduced by 1/3. I don't think this was a coincidence. ________________________________ Adam Schreiber <schreib Chinese Medicine Thursday, May 28, 2009 6:56:45 PM Hiring Receptionist I am beginning the process of hiring a receptionist/ office manager for our new clinic. Having never done this before, I am finding it quite overwhelming. I am wondering if I might be able to pick up some pointers from folks on the list who have gone through this process. A few questions (I realize some of the answers are dependent on what kind of practice I have, but I am looking for some general thoughts) - What are the most important personal qualities in an applicant? How about specific skills? What are red-flags? Is there a good resource out there on how to conduct interviews? Any other essential info for me to know? Thanks for your help- Adam Schreiber Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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