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Content about HR-Related

April 10, 2013

Evaluating Your Staff for Potential Workplace Violence

Workplace violence is an issue that many businesses don’t address until something relevant occurs, but by the time an incident happens, it can often be too late. If you haven’t thought about the possibility of workplace violence in your medical practice, you should be aware of the signs for potential violence in your staff to prevent incidents from taking place.

April 3, 2013

Do Your Anti-Harassment Policies Need an Update?

Can you recall the last time your practice updated its anti-harassment policies or had an employee relations attorney review them? If you’re like most medical practices, you took steps to create them, and once that task was completed, you forgot about the policies. That’s a big mistake, experts warn, and one that could cost your practice.

March 13, 2013

The Dangers of Playing Favorites with Staffers

In the business environment, as in life, you may like some people better than others. In your personal life, being nice to and doing favors for those with whom you get along makes perfect sense, but the rules are different at work, where you must treat employees equally and fairly. You may not want to give some employees as many perks, atta-boys or rewards as others – even if they are deserved – and you may not want to discipline an employee you truly like, but if you play favorites, your staff will notice. And it could hurt you and your practice.

March 13, 2013

What Are Your Ex-Employees Taking with Them?

Decades ago, it was reasonable to imagine that one could work for the same company from the start of one’s career to the end. Times are different now. Workers change jobs (and often careers) with far more regularity than they did in the years following World War II. Each time an employee leaves – whether voluntarily or otherwise – he or she can depart with valuable information and patient relationships. The higher an employee’s perch in a practice, the more likely it is that he or she can go to a competitor and move patients in the process.

By Michael Elkon

Decades ago, it was reasonable to imagine that one could work for the same company from the start of one’s career to the end. Think about the world portrayed in Mad Men. Don Draper has mostly worked with the same fictional co-workers – Roger Sterling, Pete Campbell, Joan Harris, Bert Cooper, etc. – for the better part of a decade. This is not just a function of Matthew Weiner keeping the same actors around; it’s a relatively accurate portrayal of work in the 1960s.

January 30, 2013

Employee Wars: What to Do When Your Team Doesn't Get Along

When staff members in any work environment don’t see eye to eye, it can be an upsetting situation for them, for other co-workers and for anyone who enters the business. Even when no negative words or actions are performed by either party, disharmony can be “felt” – pent-up bad feelings can be sensed by others and can make them uncomfortable, as in the phrase, “you could cut the tension with a knife.” In a medical office, employee wars can be downright deadly, particularly if they distract the feuding employees or their co-workers from performing tasks accurately. Here, MOT delves into common causes for employee conflict and how to handle it with aplomb.

January 23, 2013

Popular Employee Perks for 2013

Pay and perks often top the list of considerations that draw employees to an organization and make them stay. Healthcare, in particular, is a competitive hiring environment, and medical practices and other healthcare organizations need to put together benefit packages that help them stand out. Here, MOT discusses both common and popular employee perks.

October 3, 2012

Spotting & Stopping Office Bullies

In the time-travel blockbuster Back to the Future, Michael J. Fox’s character accidently is sent back in time and goes up against his father’s high school nemesis, a big bully named Biff. While the movie is fantasy, bullies like Biff are an unfortunate reality. Sadly, recent research indicates that bullying in the workplace is increasing. And, since bullying leads to lost productivity, low employee morale and workplace mistakes, it can literally have life or death ramifications in a healthcare environment.

Do you recall the time-travel blockbuster Back to the Future where Michael J. Fox’s character Marty McFly is accidently sent back in time and goes up against his father’s high school nemesis, Biff? Biff is the classic bully, and his high school bullying of Marty’s father bleeds into adulthood with devastating consequences for Marty’s entire family.

September 26, 2012

Proven Strategies to Recruit Employees via the Internet

The Internet, social media in particular, is an effective tool for medical practices to recruit new employees because that’s where your target audience spends a lot of time. Traditional networking strategies such as association luncheons and industry cocktail parties are taking a backseat to online networking. Today’s healthcare job seeker is using the web and social media channels to find job opportunities, connect with potential employers and network with colleagues in new ways.

September 19, 2012

10 People Your Practice Should Have on Speed Dial

When it comes to personal and home-related emergencies, you know exactly, without a doubt, the people you can call on to help and the right companies to contact to take care of your problems. Their numbers might even be posted on your refrigerator and saved in your phone’s memory. Unfortunately, most medical practices haven’t taken the time to think about who they can rely on if something goes wrong. In honor of National Preparedness Month (who knew, right?), MOT identifies 10 people and/or companies your practice should have on speed dial.

August 29, 2012

What to Do When a Provider Leaves Unexpectedly

Employees are no longer spending the majority of their working years with one organization. Job hopping, while still somewhat taboo, is certainly more commonplace than celebrating 25 years with the same company. For medical practices, that means providers will come and go, even physicians who have a stake in the practce, so it’s important to have a plan in place. Here, MOT offers five steps to help you handle this situation.

August 15, 2012

Understanding & Using Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs)

Over the last few decades, employment laws have dramatically increased and become more complex creating a great need for small business support in employee management. Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs) offer a partnership to businesses that may not have the staff or resources to efficiently support a human resources department and all of the administration that comes with constantly changing policies and employee needs.

By Angie Strunk

Over the last few decades, employment laws have dramatically increased and become more complex creating a great need for small business support in employee management. Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs) offer a partnership to businesses that may not have the staff or resources to efficiently support a human resources department and all of the administration that comes with constantly changing policies and employee needs.

June 27, 2012

Do's & Don'ts of Dress Code Creation & Enforcement: Piercings, Tattoos & More

There is no question that tattoos, body piercings and other forms of self-expression have become commonplace in modern society, especially amongst Generation X. Although we as a society seem to have become much more accepting of individuals’ choices for self-expression, we don’t necessarily think that this is good for business. So the question remains, can an employer curb the limits of its employees’ self-expression in the form of tattoos, piercings, extremes in dress, jewelry, and hairstyles at work without getting sued?

By: Grace Y. Horoupian, Esq.

There is no question that tattoos, body piercings and other forms of self-expression have become commonplace in modern society, especially amongst Generation X. As a result, employers have to deal with these issues in the workplace, even in offices that traditionally have had conservative dress and appearance expectations such as medical offices.

June 13, 2012

5 Critical Elements for Employment Agreements

Written contracts memorialize the parties' understandings, expectations, rights and obligations during and after the employment relationship. As such, they eliminate or significantly reduce misunderstandings that often result in costly employment disputes. Both parties stand to benefit from the fact that they are operating "on the same page". Here, MOT's expert contributor outlines five critical elements of employment contracts.

By Kenneth A. Jenero, Esq.

Written contracts memorialize the parties' understandings, expectations, rights and obligations during and after the employment relationship. As such, they eliminate or significantly reduce misunderstandings that often result in costly employment disputes. Both parties stand to benefit from the fact that they are operating "on the same page".

May 23, 2012

Big Ways Your Practice Could Be Impacted If "Obamacare" Were Overturned

During oral argument on the fate of the Affordable Care Act, several members of the U.S. Supreme Court spoke almost casually about one possible remedy in the event federal individual coverage mandates were deemed unconstitutional: an order finding the entire Act unconstitutional. The only problem: much of the Act is already law, and striking it will have the effect of reversing a rather large amount of law that has already re-shaped healthcare, in many cases irreversibly.

By Mark Rust

During oral argument on the fate of the Affordable Care Act in late March, several members of the U.S. Supreme Court spoke almost casually about one possible remedy in the event federal individual coverage mandates were deemed unconstitutional: an order finding the entire Act unconstitutional. In the days that followed argument, such a possibility was widely discussed in the media with the ease that comes of knowing that a thing not yet created can be easily cast aside.

May 9, 2012

Should You Make Employees Sign Arbitration Agreements?

In recent years, healthcare organizations are increasingly including arbitration clauses in agreements with physicians, as well as para-professional and administrative employees. Arbitration is one method of Alternative Dispute Resolution used to resolve disputes, and its popularity is based upon the perception that it is less time-consuming and less costly than traditional litigation in the court system. As described below, however, reality may bring an additional layer of costs and might not work for every situation.

By Joseph I. Zumpano, Esq., and Jamaal R. Jones, Esq.

In recent years, healthcare organizations are increasingly including arbitration clauses in agreements with physicians, as well as para-professional and administrative employees.

May 2, 2012

Are Your Staffers Classified Correctly as Employees or Independent Contractors?

Medical offices are faced with an important decision when hiring staff – whether to hire them as employees or as independent contractors. There is a trend toward healthcare organizations choosing to classify their team members as independent contractors, most likely because of the economy. As discussed in detail below, each of these two tax/work classifications have their own risks and rewards for both the employer and the staff member.

By Bret R. Goldstein, Esq.

Medical offices are faced with an important decision when hiring staff – whether to hire them as employees or as independent contractors. There is a trend toward healthcare organizations choosing to classify their team members as independent contractors, most likely because of the economy. As discussed in detail below, each of these two tax/work classifications have their own risks and rewards for both the employer and the staff member.

Pros and cons of hiring staff as employees

April 18, 2012

Savvy vs Senseless: Using Remote Employees

Hiring employees who work from home or in a different office may seem to some healthcare providers like a great way to get non-hands-on functions accomplished while reducing overhead and other expenses for their practice. On the other hand, other providers may find the idea off-putting and completely impractical. Here, MOT talks with a number of experts to evaluate whether using remote employees is savvy or senseless.

March 27, 2012

Avoiding "Lotto-Sized" Anti-Fraud Fines

Medical practices of all types and sizes should pay close attention to some little-discussed changes to the federal False Claims Act (FCA) that make it far easier for individuals to try to “win the lotto” by blowing the whistle on wrongdoing at healthcare or other organizations. A recent headline announced that a whistleblower would recover $25 million as part of an FCA settlement.

By A. Neil Hartzell

If you learned of a way to cash in on a lotto-sized jackpot that offered better odds than any Powerball ticket, would you be interested? Given our society’s materialistic bent, you can bet most Americans would quickly say “tell me more!”

February 22, 2012

Why You Should Worry about Medical Board Complaints

Most doctors read about a physician suspended or revoked by the state medical board and think: “That’s something that I’ll never have to worry about.” Surprisingly – and contrary to common perception – many medical board complaints do not stem from clear and unequivocal malpractice, fraud or misconduct issues.

By Alex J. Keoskey

A state medical board is an entity that every doctor knows. This familiarity stems primarily from their paper license, framed proudly on their office wall, clearly bearing the name of that entity. Unfortunately, the familiarity usually ends there.

When it comes to discipline being meted out by that board, few physicians are aware of the frightening particulars. A medical board complaint, which results in certain types of discipline, can result in a loss of hospital, prescribing and insurance privileges.

January 11, 2012

Exploring Web-based Credentialing for Physicians & Staff

In order to participate with any health plan, hospital, or government health program, providers and their staff must prove their identity and their qualifications to provide required health services. Providers are completing as many as 17 different paper applications each year and the burden becomes unbearable.

By Matthew Haddad

Healthcare providers today face more challenges than ever before. Being a provider is no longer just about offering the best care to your patients; now providers have to spend equal time on new administrative burdens like choosing an EHR solution, converting to ICD-10, and keeping processes, procedures, and technology compliant with constantly changing industry regulations.

October 18, 2011

Requiring Continuing Education for Your Staff

Certainly your employees were qualified for their positions when you hired them, but have they remained up to speed with relevant developments in the healthcare world? If not, you could be opening your practice up to a wide range of problems.

Given the complexity of healthcare and the rapid pace of healthcare research, education for all who perform medical procedures should be a lifelong or career-long endeavor, says Dale Grube, associate dean of continuing education at the University of Kansas Medical Center Continuing Education in Kansas City, Kan.

October 11, 2011

Dealing with Inter-generational Conflict

Take a look around your medical office – more than likely, the members of your healthcare and administrative staff represent different generations. For example, you may have an older physician from the Baby Boomer generation working with a mid-30s nurse practitioner and several Generation Y nurses.

September 20, 2011

Take the Risk Out of Hiring with Background Checks

Healthcare providers face a unique challenge when it comes to background screening their office personnel, contractors and potential vendors.

By Paige Vesuvio

Healthcare providers face a unique challenge when it comes to background screening their office personnel, contractors and potential vendors. In addition to the standard screening steps such as criminal background checks, employment and education verification and substance abuse testing that most employers perform, healthcare providers are, in many cases, tasked with screening applicants and contractors against industry-specific sanctions databases.

July 12, 2011

Preventing Harassment in the Workplace

Some employers mistakenly believe that harassment was a problem in the 1990s and supervisors and employees now know better. They are wrong. Contrary to popular belief, harassment is not a thing of the past – and the evidence shows that some employees don’t know better.

By J. Hagood Tighe

Some employers mistakenly believe that harassment was a problem in the 1990s and supervisors and employees now know better. They are wrong. Contrary to popular belief, harassment is not a thing of the past – and the evidence shows that some employees don’t know better.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the government agency responsible for enforcing the federal laws against discrimination and harassment, reports many recent lawsuits and settlements involving harassment.

June 21, 2011

Evaluating Your Medical Office Staff

To ensure that your medical office staff is performing at the highest level possible, it’s important to evaluate your employees on a regular basis. Even if you believe that you have the right staff in place, there are some techniques you can use to evaluate the performance of your current personnel.