Stress free private practice.

Testaments for Stress-Free Private Practice"?

1. Keep up your time
Whether patients are present or not go to the clinic at the specified time. So every one will know that you stick to time so they will also follow you. Similarly stop your work at a particular time. Your time should be convenient to you and majority of your patients but not
necessarily all. Even if if you work for 12 hours
from 8 to 8, your time may be inconvenient to
few! So you should draw the line when to stop.
You can not please every body every time.

2. Do not hand over your mobile number freely
to all.
This mobile is for you for your convenience not for the convenience of some one else.

3. Delegate work.
Give responsibilities as well some minor decision taking power to your staff. Like ordering water tank if there is no water; getting some minor work done etc or giving some minor concession like 5% or less than that in the indoor bill etc. So for all these minor things you are not disturbed.

4. Do the regular work you enjoy doing.
For complicated cases call your collegue or friend.
Share the responsibility.

5. Call super specialists and get the work done by them. The quality of the work will be also good and your headache is minimised.

6. Rule of 80:20
80% of your income comes from regular 20% of your routine work. Remaining 20% of income comes from 80% of uncommon or rare work. You can restrict yourself to routine 20% work and still earn good money and refer the remaining 80% to others. It means there is not much financial gain doing an occasional case which saps your energy like ordering new instruments, reading the newer surgery, the tension whether it will go well or not etc. This is called rule of 80:20. Applicable in many situations.

7. Do not live in the hospital or its very close proximity so that patients and relatives want to meet you at odd hours(for you), but right time for them after having finished all their work. And they expect you to see even for minor complaints as they think that you are the duty doctor.

8.SOPs
Have standard operating protocols like what should be done in emergency. What should be done at night if a patient comes, When to call you etc.

9. Do not take any hospital headache to home.
Be a family man. Your hospital staff should not distub you as far as possible for any of their work or hospital work like someone not coming for duty, some body wants emergency leave etc. They all can be delegated to one of them itself.

10. Enjoy and nurture a hobby which you enjoy doing like travelling or photography or teaching or giving lectures or writing etc. Take regular holidays preferably twice a year with your family. One a shorter for a week or so another longer for about two weeks or so. There are many other things in the world to be seen and done when you are still young. Running the hospital is not the only life for you..