Planning should involve everyone in the practice
Staff buy-in is essential for success
The challenge of successfully implementing a strategic plan is to get the endorsement of everyone in the practice, whether they are physicians, nurses, or clerks.
And the way to get staff buy-in is to involve them in the planning process, the experts say.
"Everybody has good ideas about what is good about a practice and what needs to be improved. Some of the best ideas come from the people who are out there on the front line," says Diane Peterson, president of D. Peterson & Associates, a Houston-based health care consulting firm.
How the planning process works depends on the size of the practice. In a small practice, everyone can become involved. In a big group practice, a committee situation could work best.
For large practices, she suggests a planning retreat, preferably on a Saturday, during which the committee reports its findings.
Dick Hansen, a Palo Alto-based health care consultant with the Medical Group Management Association, agrees. He suggests holding a meeting in a relaxed setting away from the usual place of work, facilitated by someone outside the practice who can take a neutral view on the issues. "An outside consultant is there for the benefit of the entire group and doesn’t have any baggage. He or she is able to guide the group to talk about really tough issues."
If your practice can’t afford an outside consultant, consider swapping with a practice manager in another community. He could lead your strategic planning session and you could do the same for him.
"It’s much easier to communicate with an outside person," Hansen says.
Whoever leads the planning process should begin by talking to everyone in the practice, asking staff to name the weaknesses and strengths of the practice and for ways they can be improved. "If you ask 10 to 15 people their top issues, you may get 30 different answers, but you can distill them down to the top issues, prioritize them, and tackle them," he says.
Questions to address include:
• How do you describe the group?
• What are the group’s top three issues?
• What do you want the group to accomplish in the next one or two years?
• How can the group get there?
Also avoid the temptation to rush into a strategic plan, experts advise. Instead, take the time to do some research so you have a good idea about the issues you are facing.
Look at the health care market in your area and what’s going on in your practice. "This will help you get a picture of the practice and a foundation from which to build a future," says Hansen.
If you do your homework, you should have a clear picture of what your goals and outcomes should be. Here’s how to start:
• Examine your practice and any external factors that could affect your success. External factors may include population shifts, your competition, changes in your community, and referral sources. (For details on how to conduct an analysis of external factors, see related article, at right.)
Look at the internal environment of your practice itself. What kind of skills do people have in your practice? Look at management skills as well as clinical skills. How smoothly are your operations running? Look at profitability. Are there problems on the financial side? How are you marketing your practice? How satisfied are your patients? Is your practice growing or shrinking?
• Assess your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (also known as a SWOT analysis). Look at what needs to be enhanced and what needs to be changed. A good plan will capitalize on your strengths and correct your weaknesses. Opportunities might include a chance to add a satellite office in a fast-growing area or to join a new provider panel. Threats might include competitors moving into your area or decline in reimbursements.
• Establish a set of goals. This is when your group decides how it is going to build on its strengths and opportunities and address the weaknesses and threats.
Peterson suggests coming up with no more than six strategic areas to focus on. "The outcome is what you want it to be. Your goal may be growth in your practice, changing the insurance mix of patients, or a plan to close the practice in three years. With good planning, you’ll be able to see the outcome very clearly and work toward it," she says.
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