I am personally a big fan of the clinic Policies & Procedure manual & I have recommended & worked with my clients for over 14 years to establish their own version of this in their clinics…

However, be aware of a couple of pitfalls associated with your clinic Policies & Procedure manual:

1. Although establishing policies and procedures in your clinic has clear benefits for your practice, there are negatives associated with instituting these elements. One is the researching, writing, incorporating and enforcing practice policies and procedures takes time and money. You’ll need to come up with and develop these policies & procedures, or assign this responsibility to trusted Practice Manager or senior staff admin. Each component must be researched to ensure that nothing contradicts existing federal or state laws governing worker rights, health codes and safety rules, then there are the AHPRA guidelines that we must all comply with. Secondly over time, policies and procedures must be assessed and evaluated for effectiveness, since inefficient procedures can impede practice growth. They must also be revised and updated on a regular basis which takes time.

2. Having policies and procedures in place may restrict your clinics ability to make rapid decisions, shift strategies, make promotions or fire ineffective clinicians or admin staff since these processes are formalized. Smaller clinics tend to be more nimble and able to make more efficient strategy changes, since they’re less encumbered by established guidelines. Policies and procedures restrict a clinics autonomy, since their purpose is to establish processes that discourage spontaneous actions and decisions.

Go ahead and create a clinic Policies & Procedure manual if you do not have one or update yours if it has not been updated for some time, but just be aware of the above pitfalls.