Academy of Digital Doctors Journal Edition 1 | Page 19

ACADEMY OF DIGITAL DOCTORS JOURNAL

What can doctors do to
build and sustain a
quality front desk?
As the leader of the practice,
the onus is on the physician to
be closely involved in front desk
recruitment and operations.
Appreciate your FDEs,
address/greet them by
name, and demonstrate that
you understand their value
to your practice. A show of
respect evokes a stronger
emotional response than a
financial incentive.
It is critical that the FDE is a
good fit for your business.
Besides qualifications and
experience, customer service
attitude and people skills
must also be gauged. You
certainly don't want tensions
between staff simply because
they rub each other the
wrong way! Physician practices are increasingly including their staff in the hiring
process. It has become quite
common to organize an
informal meet-up over coffee
with staff members to
understand the candidate's
cultural fit.
Another way of ushering a
new FDEs is by holding a
brief welcome event or
through a small gesture such
as sending him/her a bouquet with a welcome message.

Doctors have started including FDEs in their daily meetings to foster a greater sense
of teamwork and mutual
respect.
Medical establishments are
also investing time in hosting
orientation sessions where
front and back office staff
get familiarized with each
other.
The tradition of recognizing
and rewarding good work
has moved beyond just a pay
hike to more creative
employee engagement strategies such as group outings,
gift certificates and gift cards.
Doctors also take time to
personally thank FDEs,
which is a great motivator
for individuals who are
passionate about their work.

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Explore retention strategies.
Get feedback from FDEs,
and also communicate your
performance expectations so
you're always on the same
page. For instance, FDEs
can sit with billing staff to
review denied claims and
probe if more assistance or
information could have been
provided by them.
Another strategy is to empower
FDEs with technology tools
that enable them to be more
efficient and productive. Investing in professional training and
development will benefit individual staff members as well as
your practice. Employee development and mentorship is a
huge draw for younger employees, and must be leveraged to
gain their loyalty.