What time do you start seeing patients in the morning? 9 AM? 8:30? 8 AM? Whatever time it is…the hour before you see patients is the most important hour of the day.
This is the time of the day when you set a precedent for how the rest of your day will go. This is when you get yourself, your team, and your office ready to help lots of people in your community.
The mindset and habits you have during this crucial hour will make a tremendous difference in the health of your practice.
Wow, that’s a lot of buildup! Is this really true? Absolutely!
Let me paint you a picture of two different scenarios and you can decide for yourself.
Dr. Smith knows the importance of the most important hour and although he starts seeing patients at 9 AM he arrives at his office at 8 AM every day.
He starts by making sure that he parks far away enough from his office to give his patients plenty of parking spaces. He walks through his parking lot looking for trash, graffiti, anything broken, or anything that could make a negative 1st impression on a new patient.
He arrives at his front door and looks at his windows and the outside of his office to make sure everything is clean and in working order.
He unlocks his door and enters his lobby and begins to pray and visualizes a full front lobby full of patients who are laughing and smiling and excited to be in his office. A place full of people who are sick and suffering who have come to his practice looking for hope and healing.
He begins to turn on the lights in his office and makes sure none of them are flickering and none of the light bulbs are out. Opens window coverings to let in natural light when applicable.
He looks at his lobby and looks to see if chairs are in the right positions, magazines, brochures or anything else in the lobby is in its right places. He makes sure there are no unusual smells. He looks at the artwork or posters on the walls and sees if any of them are tilted and need to be realigned. He makes sure everything in his lobby is exactly the way that he wants it to be to make a great first impression.
Next, he begins to walk through his office continuing to pray and visualize in each room what he desires to see happening today. He prays over his adjusting room(s), consultation room, exam/x-ray room, and any other rooms in the office. He makes sure every room is clean and orderly.
He then looks at his schedule and sees if there are any report of findings that he needs to prepare during this most important hour. He reviews films, case histories, exams, and other findings and creates a custom plan to help the patient get the best possible results. He thinks through his communication about how best to connect with the patient and help them to see and hear what he has to say to them regarding their condition and his solution. He does this for each of his scheduled reports for the day.
By this point (about 30 minutes before you see patients) the rest of his team arrives and he does a morning huddle meeting with them. He examines his team member’s body language and voice inflection for any signs of issues that need to be addressed.
During the morning huddle, he focuses on the clinic mission with the team and prays for God’s blessings on the day.
Next, they review the schedule together. They are looking for unique situations with patients such as:
After the morning huddle meeting (at about 15 minutes before opening) the rest of the team checks voicemail and other communication channels and gets anything ready that needs to be prepared for special appointments. The team gets tea and coffee ready. They turn on your clinic music and any educational materials you use. And they open the door five minutes before you open at 8:55 AM.
While your staff is doing those things you are preparing yourself for a great day of adjusting. Stretching to get your body ready and focusing your mind so you’re ready to see your first patient.
At 9 AM your first patient walks in to a smiling team member and the fun begins!
Dr. Jones starts seeing patients at 9 AM but usually arrives sometime between 9:05 AM and 9:15 AM.
His staff is always there before he is.
He doesn’t know what they do before he gets there.
But they are always waiting for him.
When he gets to the practice he parks as close as possible and runs into the office knowing that he is always late.
He doesn’t look at anything or prepare anything he just goes directly into his adjusting room and adjusts his first patient with his keys still in his pocket.
So his body, mind, team, and office are not prepared for success.
His most important hour is lost every day.
Who are you Doc? Which scenario resonates with you? Which scenario do you think would give you the best opportunity to make the greatest impact on your community?
Prioritize the most important hour of your patient day. Your patients, your team, and your community deserve your best.
So step it up and see a dramatic change in your practice and life!
Doc if you know that you struggle with your habits, team, or systems and you want to break free so that you can finally make the impact in your community that you’re looking to make then reach out to us about Upper Cervical Practice Mastery Coaching.
Your practice is a reflection of your life.
We focus on helping you get your mindset, habits, and systems right so you can achieve your goals.
