After reading the above mentioned blog, something caught my eye while reading a report concerning what is going on in Washington regarding this whole issue. I thought I’d pass it along to readers of our various Silkin Management Group blog sites.  It concerns a statement made by Congressman Ron Paul of Texas, made while questioning Ben Bernake, the chairman of the Federal Reserve.  Whether you think well of Congressman Paul or not, his statement is food for thought:

“Perhaps the most abhorrent bit of chicanery has been the threat that if a deal is not reached to increase the debt by August 2^nd, social security checks may not go out.  In reality, the Chief Actuary of Social Security confirmed last week that current Social Security tax receipts are more than enough to cover current outlays.  The only reason those checks would not go out would be if the administration decided to spend those designated funds elsewhere.  It is very telling that the administration would rather frighten seniors dependent on social security checks than alarm their big banking friends, who have already received $5.3 trillion in bailouts, stimulus and quantitative easing.  This instance of trying to blackmail Congress into tax increases by threatening social security demonstrates how scary it is to be completely dependent on government promises and why many young people today would jump at the chance to opt out of Social Security al together.

I have always found it interesting, from a financial planning point of view, that the government takes our social security money and puts it in the general funds and spends it on anything it chooses to, like wars, rather than setting it aside for what it was designated for – paying Social Security benefits.  Yes, the amount of money coming in for many years exceeded the outgo due to the age discrepancies of payers and payees, but had the excess money not been spent elsewhere, there would be no looming lack of Social Security funds to deal with.  And Mr. Paul makes it a point that Social Security income can still pay for the present benefits payments, as long as the money isn’t taken for other uses.

Whatever your take on all of this is, whether you like Congressman Paul or not, I thought that readers of our blog sites, whether Silkin Management Group clients or not, would be interested in this debate from a financial planning point of view.

Dave McKevitt

Silkin Management Group Consultant

If you would like more information about Silkin Management Group and/or Silkin Management Group’s services, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

We recently ran across a new IRS ruling that we thought we’d pass along to readers of our Silkin Management Group blog sites, whether Silkin clients or not.

The IRS recently announced a change in the rate of reimbursement for business mileage from 51 cents per mile to 55.5 cents.  This is for the period July 1, 2011 to December 31, 2011.  Given the frequency of small business owners driving their vehicles for business use, this increase in write-off will offer a nice savings.

Normally the IRS updates its mileage rates on a yearly basis, but given the recent increase in gas prices, they decided to do a mid-year change.  This is advantageous to any business owner who uses their vehicle for business purposes. Silkin Management Group clients who, for example, are mobile veterinarians, will find this additional write-off helpful.

At the same time, any employer who reimburses their employees for business mileage will have to reimburse at this new, higher rate.

Be aware too that, if you are audited by the IRS, they will require good records of your business miles usage.

Bill Hickey

Silkin Management Group Consultant

You can find out more about Silkin Management Group by visiting our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

In yesterday’s Silkin Management Group blog (which you can access at this Silkin Management Group blog site: Part 1) we began a discussion of a job description for the owner of a health care practice. Job descriptions are a vital part of the effective management of any practice or business, but the owner’s job description is often overlooked. Clients new to Silkin Management Group are aided by their consultant to implement job descriptions throughout the office including what the duties and responsibilities of the owner should be.

In today’s article we’ll list out some essential duties of a practice owner. These duties go along with the “purpose, product and statistics” of an owner, as presented in the above referenced blog.  These duties, as well as job descriptions for every position in a dental, veterinarian or optometric practice can be found in Silkin Management Group’s 400 plus page Job Description and Office Policy Manual.

Job Duties The Practice Owner

General

• Establish the Mission Statement for the practice and communicate it to the staff. Make sure the staff understand it and are all “on board” with it.

• Set the overall goals for the practice and communicate them frequently to the staff.  Ensure that the goals are achieved through proper practice management.

• Lead the staff actively with direction and purpose by setting a high standard for ethical and professional conduct at all times.

• See to it that the form of the organization is held in place by not allowing others to unnecessarily cross the line and do other’s jobs.

• Maintain a “business-oriented” viewpoint so that decisions are based on what is best for the practice and not on emotions or opinions.

• Don’t keep staff around who are non-productive and/or don’t care about the business.

• Ensure that all legal matters concerning every aspect of the business are properly confronted and handled.  This would include all employment issues, proper contracts in place, proper licensing, etc.

• Regularly review the various statistics that measure the productivity of the office and act accordingly.

In our next several Silkin Management Group blogs we’ll cover some additional areas of an owner’s job duties. .

For more information about Silkin Management Group and/or our Office Policy and Job Description Manual visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com and/or call us at 800-695-0257.

Jack Hennessy

Silkin Management Group Consultant

Given that Silkin Management Group clients are all small businesses which are very
directly affected by this legislation, we thought we’d offer up some alternative thoughts
that any small business, whether a Silkin Management Group client or not, might use
when this legislation starts taking effect in a serious way.

With health care premiums expected to increase by eight to ten percent again next near, controlling health care costs is essential. Also, unless the legislation is overturned through the legal battles going on, in 2014 any business with 50 or more employees will be required to offer health insurance or pay a per-employee tax. Therefore, if you are a small business, here are some alternative ideas you might look at in order to control this cost.

Maintain your employee count below 50 people on your payroll. If you do this
you will not be required to offer health insurance and will have no tax penalties if
you do not offer health insurance for your employees.

Use higher deductible plans. Not only do you save money, you will put your
employee’s attention and emphasis on the cost of their health care and, hopefully,
maintaining a healthy life style since more money will be coming out of their
pocket.

Use a health care insurance consultant, somebody who is very familiar with all
aspects of the legislation and all of the insurance products in the marketplace
that people can use to comply with the legislation. It is very difficult for any
employer or employee to have adequate knowledge on this subject and make the
best choices out of the myriad of possibilities available. Hiring a professional,
likely at no cost as they should get paid through commissions, will help guide you
through this morass of potential confusion.

Have a “wellness education” program for your employees – there are many
of these available for businesses. Studies have shown that the more people
understand what they should do to maintain good health, the lower their health
care costs will be.

The above are just a few ideas that any employer can use to attempt to control their health care costs with the implementation of the Obama-care legislation. We’ll present any more ideas we come across on this subject on our various Silkin Management Group blog sites.

Dave McKevitt
Silkin Management Group Consultant

For more information about Silkin Management Group and our practice management
program, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

Today we’ll present some additional pointers that Silkin Management Group consultants go over with their clients as part of implementing an effective recall system.

To really get the patient or client involved in their regular repeating appointments you must reflect a feeling of continuing care rather than the traditional “come and see me in X months” attitude. Watch the language you use.  Sometimes the word “recall” has a negative connotation for some people. A person might associate “recall” with defective merchandise.  Instead you might use “re-examination”, “re-evaluation”, “regular visits” or “regular appointments”.

It is also helpful to note the name of the staff person whom the patient will likely hear from to remind them of their appointment. This can make the appointment more important in their mind.

Recall phone calls should be made when you are most likely to reach the patient or client. Ideally call after 5pm on weekdays or on Saturday morning. Be very diligent about follow-up. Make every attempt to reach the patient by phone as well as sending reminder cards or letters.

Don’t let any patient fall between the cracks. Silkin Management Group clients are taught that every patient should be in three places:

1. In the appointment book with an appointment.
2. In the recall system to be notified and/or reminded at some time in the future of their appointment.
3. In the postcard file box if you use a postcard system in which the patient filled out an appointment postcard at their last appointment.

When Silkin Management Group clients follow these tips, they have a much more effective recall system.

For more information about how Silkin Management Group can help you improve your recall activities, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com or call us at 800-695-0257.

Bill Hickey

Consultant for Silkin Management Group

Along these lines I recently read an article on 4 key hiring mistakes that I thought would be interesting to Silkin Management Group clients and anyone else reading our various Silkin Management Group blogs. You can link to this article here: http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/managing/article/4-hiring-mistakes-and-how-to-prevent-them?cid=em-smartbrief

I thought I would go over the 4 mistakes that the author covers and comment how Silkin Management Group approaches these mistakes so you can compare what we do to what the author discusses.

1. Relying solely on interviews to pick candidates: We have a group interview system that quickly eliminates the less desirable prospects and leaves you only with the best potential employees.  Those prospects are then tested prior to any interview as a further weeding out process. We have 3 tests that we use.  Also, what questions you ask in an interview are key and can cut through some of the “PR” or “putting on a good face” that normally will occur in such an interview.

1. Assuming superstars are good models: Your best producers likely have two things in common – they are usually “glass half full” people – more of a positive attitude than a negative attitude, and they are well trained for their job.  You can raise competency and attitude tremendously with a good staff training program, something that we teach and provide to Silkin Management Group clients.

1. Assuming you know what skills are required: You should know what skills are required for any job, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t train a good potential person for the job if they are lacking some of the needed skills.  Testing helps determine certain traits that are applicable to certain jobs. The tests that we use at Silkin Management Group give you a decent idea of where a person might fit or not fit.  For example a person who is not an extrovert wouldn’t be a great candidate for a receptionist at a busy medical office, but could be fine for handling insurance billing.

1. Failing to do a careful background check: I agree with what the author says about this subject.  Always do a good background check before hiring.

Silkin Management Group consultants work closely with their clients on hiring good staff and, through the various systems we put in place, most clients greatly increase their odds of finding and hiring the best possible candidates.  If you’d like more information about how Silkin Management Group can help you with hiring and training staff, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

CONSULTANT NAME

Consultant for Silkin Management Group

But often the biggest problem Silkin Management Group consultants have with their clients is getting them to actually ask for a referral.  In fact I read a recent survey that indicated that 86% of the people surveyed said they would refer friends or family but only 12% were ever asked! So they key is asking. This begs the question…what is the right way to ask?

At Silkin Management Group we’ve learned over the years that timing is everything when asking for referrals. Asking a new patient for a referral when they are first checking in and haven’t received any service is not only foolish, but counter-productive.  But asking a patient or client after they’ve received excellent service and expressed their satisfaction with your office can be very natural. So the first thing to do when starting any sort of referral campaign is to train your staff to keep an eye out for any of your patients/clients who are expressing any sort of satisfaction or happiness with the service they received.

Once you’ve observed that you are speaking with a happy patient/client, asking for a referral can be very natural. You can simply say something like, “Mary, we are very happy that you are doing so well with Dr. Jones and got that situation handled. Do you know of anyone else that might need the help that Dr. Jones provides?”  This gives them the idea that they are helping that friend or family member rather than being intruded upon. Then have a card to give them so they can provide that friend or family member with information about your office.

This is the basic method that Silkin Management Group consultants teach their clients and it works!  Try it yourself.  Remember, timing is everything.

If you’d like more information about how Silkin Management Group can help you with referrals and any other practice management situation, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

Eric Korb

Silkin Management Group Consultant

Today, as a follow up to that policy, you’ll find below a sample policy concerning changes in tax/W-4 status that all staff should be aware of. This policy can be found in Silkin Management Group’s 400 plus page Office Policy and Job Description Manual which is something all clients new to Silkin Management Group receive.

CHANGE IN PAYROLL STATUS – SAMPLE POLICY

An employee must file an amended Form W-4 reducing their number of exemptions within ten days after:

• The spouse for whom the employee had been claiming an exemption is divorced or legally separated or claims his/her own exemption on a separate certificate.
• The support of a dependent for whom the employee claimed exemptions is taken over by someone else or no longer furnishes more than half the support for the year.
• The employee finds the income of a dependent relative is less than the legally allowable amount for the year, and the employee had not previously claimed an exemption for the dependent.
• The employee or his/her spouse will reach age 65 on or before January 1 of the next year.
• The employee of his/her spouse becomes blind.

Note:  The employer is required to submit the W-4 Form to the IRS for review if the employee:

• Is claiming 10 or more exemptions, or
• Is claiming total exemption from withholding and earns more than $200 per week, or
• The employer believes an employee has claimed an excessive number of dependents.

As we recommend to all Silkin Management Group clients, do not implement this policy without first checking with your accountant that all the items mentioned in this policy are correct and valid per the latest IRS regulations.  IRS regulations change with such frequency that it is imperative that you get professional advice before implementing any policy that can be affected by their rules and regulations.

For more information about Silkin Management Group, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com or call us at 800-695-0257.

Gary Crawshaw

Silkin Management Group Consultant

In yesterday’s Silkin Management Group blog we presented a sample policy concerning discrimination and harassment.  You can link to that Silkin Management Group blog site here: Discrimination and Harassment Sample Policy.

Today we’ll present the first part of a sample policy that lays out an office procedure for handling discrimination and harassment claims.  These policies are all part of what Silkin Management Group consultants implement with their clients to insure a smooth running and legally protected office. Be sure to consult with a good employment attorney before implementing any such policy in your office.

HARASSMENT CLAIMS HANDLING (Sample Policy)

Due to the nature and scope of current state and federal laws on harassment, sexual and otherwise including discrimination, this formal office policy is put in place to not only protect any individuals who may become victims of harassment, but to also protect the office from any spurious claims of this nature.

The following points are what all staff are to know and follow:

• All staff are required to read and attest to having read and understood our office policy “Discrimination and Harassment”. In doing so, all staff acknowledge their understanding of the legal definitions of harassment and are responsible for conducting themselves in a way representative of that understanding.

• Any originations made by any staff member who claims he/she is being sexually or otherwise harassed or discriminated against will be investigated immediately and handled as true even if evidence at that time is incomplete or contradictory.

• Immediate action will be undertaken to protect the staff member who makes the claim.  This may include temporary suspension of the accused staff member during the period of the investigation if the complainant feels threatened in any way by the accused’s presence. While this may appear unfair in the case of a questionable claim, it is often the only action that will suffice in court as “appropriate measure taken” short of termination.

In tomorrow’s Silkin Management Group blog we’ll present Part 2 of this policy which will outline further steps to be included in this policy.

Silkin Management Group has a 400 page Office Policy and Job Description Manual which outlines all the key office policies we recommend for our clients.  If you’d like more information about this manual or any other services offered by Silkin Management Group, visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com or call us at 800-695-0257.

Dave McKevitt

Silkin Management Group Consultant

Today’s example policy is one that could be used as part of the above referenced sample presented in yesterday’s Silkin Management Group blog. It covers additional information concerning policies on hours worked.

More Policy on Keeping Track of Time Worked – Sample

• How is “Time Worked” Defined?  All elapsed time, from the moment you actually begin your duties until the end of the work day, except for time spent at lunch or dinner, is time worked. Arriving early, leaving late, or preliminary time spent in grooming, changing clothes or attending to personal matters – none of these activities is considered time worked. It’s when you actually start work. Remember that you need to get permission to work overtime if you start work early or work late. If you don’t have such permission you may have to adjust your hours for another day during the week to balance it out. Always let the Office Manager or Doctor know when this occurs so that any possible overtime can be handled in advance.

• Compensatory Time Off:  Non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay whenever they perform overtime work. Employees may not take time off in lieu of receiving overtime pay.  Please don’t ask to make up time missed if it will result in overtime. Any time off during normally scheduled work hours will be without pay.

• Exchanging Hours With Another Employee: Staff members may exchange hours with another employee, providing they have prior authorization and that the exchange involves no overtime for either employee.

For more information about Silkin Management Group’s services and/or Silkin Management Group’s Office Policy and Job Description Manual, contact us at 800-695-0257 or visit our website at www.silkinmanagementgroup.com

Bill Hickey

Silkin Management Group Consultant