Reading the schedule like a PRO!
Understanding your patient schedule is quite possibly one of the most important tasks a team member can take on. And occasionally the toughest to learn. Simplifying is OUR JAM, it’s what our consultants are really good at and enjoy the most. Today we’re going to lay out a couple of easy ways to get someone well on their way to reading the schedule like a PRO!!
First and foremost, we like to remind clients to look at the schedule like a puzzle. It’s a game to figure out what will work best for the practice AND the patient.
PRO TIP: what will work best for the practice delivers the best results for the patients, so look for practice happiness FIRST!
Some people see the schedule like a game of Tetris. However, the longer you work closely with schedules, you realize that it’s more relatable to a game of Sudoku!
Think about it …. Sudoku requires you to create a grouping of numbers that any single number from 1-9 can only be used once in the box, in the lines horizontally, vertically and side to side. Your providers are the numbers! They can only be in one place at one time. (unless you’ve got some AI we’re not yet aware of, if that’s the case, tell us all about it!)
If we’re only looking across the schedule one hour at a time, we may miss something incredibly important like a pop up limited exam or new patient in Hygiene that at that EXACT moment your Doctor will need to be doing their exam and unable to start that filling appointment on their own schedule. Looking across all options will save you later!
Adding on top of that is utilizing your systems capabilities to differentiate your providers on the schedule. If your providers are listed in a specific color, their appointment blocks showing up in that color helps you to be able to quickly see where they are already scheduled. Hygiene will typically be in their single (or maybe taking two) columns. However, a doctor’s schedule will span across multiple operatories most days. These colors help you to identify open opportunities quickly and efficiently.
These are two of many ways you can start learning to read the patient schedule like a true pro! For more tips, join us on our podcast and check out the other resources that we have! We love spreading ideas and sharing what we’ve seen work!
We are happy to help you in your practice ownership journey so feel free to reach out with questions, any time! Send us an email at [email protected] or schedule a FREE Strategy Call.
