Practice Management

The phrase "open book management" means many different things to different people, and in some arenas makes the staff cringe with fear of the charts posted on the wall and the monthly beatings which occur when they do not reach their assigned quotas.

Almost all tips for interviewing are written to help the person being interviewed do well. What if you're the boss and the one conducting the interview?

"John called me last night. He has been offered a position in a practice near his girl friend, and he thinks he must accept it. He says he only learned of it a few days ago. He will be leaving in two weeks."

Several years ago I attended a seminar entitled "Employee Discipline and Performance Mistakes." Afterwards, I wrote up a simple, step-by-step plan for dealing with common employee discipline problems, like tardiness, not following the dress code or standards of conduct, failing to compete tasks or checklists.

Negative incentives can also be enforced, like subtractions for tardiness... and incomplete worksheets.

Bringing on a new associate, making an associate a partial owner, selling out to an existing associate or bringing in an outside owner all will change the dynamics within a team.

Practice owners need to strategize on employee compensation.

The point is to increase the risk of detection to a point that most of those with the inclination to steal will be discouraged.

You must consider your ability to continue investing through periods of high and low price levels.

There ought to be a long line waiting to "pony up" for the good of the profession.

Plan now to simplify year-end tax preparation

Screening senior cats for evidence of renal insufficiency is a rewarding undertaking.

My annual visit compliance has skyrocketed to 94% within 18 months of sending out reminder cards.

Manhattan, Kan. -Kansas State University (KSU) researchers say recent water samples they've taken in the Kansas River basin indicate that current treatment methods aren't good enough to eliminate common antibiotics in the state's surface waters.

Your homework assignment: Learn and apply the following practice mathematical rules and ratios by this time next month.

When the Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act, or Check 21 as it is called, was signed into law last fall, few veterinarians noticed.

Dr. Allen Thomas walked swiftly through the hotel corridor. Above him a sign announced a gala event in Ballroom C for all registered veterinarians.

Someone needs to call Mrs. Smith and tell her that her dog died during the night. It will be a touchy situation, as we expected him to do fine. I'm sure she is going to be shocked and distraught."

Name the right beneficiary today, and save your heirs a big tax bill tomorrow

Dr. Bennett had been called to the phone. Janet Billings, DVM, was now alone in the pharmacy.

Ask yourself these questions to check the health of your office safe

I have a present for you, Mrs. Client. It's behind that door over there. And I know you are going to love it!

Before you can choose a consultant you need to know what you want them to do for your practice.

I had a dream last night, probably because of dinner I over-consumed as usual.

Today it takes a winning team to run a successful practice.

As of this writing, milk prices have shown a desperately needed improvement from the dismal levels that prevailed for much of 2002 and 2003.

Missy answered the phone on the second ring.

A job description is a listing of specific tasks to be done while an employee is on the job any given day.

Last week I attended a social event in the area where I first practiced. Returning home, I drove along a 10-mile stretch of route 611, between Martin's Creek and Mt. Bethel, Penn. As I did so, nostalgia ran strong, as I recalled names like Budd Ott, Floyd Ott, Mike Palmer, Charlie Diehl and many others. These were all active dairy farms in the 1970s, when milk prices were strong and dairy practice relatively simple.

Promoting your practice through public continuing education events requires careful planning for a successful and well-attended outcome.