05/07/2024    Joel Lang, DPM

10 Suggestions to be an On-time Physician

I read with interest the series of useful policies
and suggestions toward keeping a practice on time.
In my first year of practice, I got bogged down
one day and was significantly late in seeing a new
patient who was waiting longer than he should
have. It turns out he was a lawyer and he taught
me a lesson I carried through my entire practice
career of 35 years. Upon entering the treatment
room, he said something like the following:

Dr. Lang, I respect that you are a professional
and that your time is valuable. That is why I
showed up on time or a few minutes early. However,
I am also a professional and my time is also
valuable. I have been waiting to see you for “x”
minutes. As I respect your time, you must also
respect mine.” Of course, he was absolutely right.
I was not allocating my time efficiently,
certainly not in his case. After that, I decided
that to consider having seen a patient “on time” I
had to see him/her within 10 minutes of their
appointment time.

To accomplish this, I divided each of my office
hours into 6 10-minute segments which I called
units. Each patient was scheduled with a day and
time and allotted an appropriate number of time
units. New patients were allotted 3 units. Quick
follow-ups like 6-week post-op visits were
allotted one. Other patients, (depending on their
condition and anticipated treatment complexity)
were allotted different numbers of units
accordingly as were in-office surgeries. Pre-op
conferences were allotted 2 units. (If there is
interest, I will describe the spectrum of the many
services provided in a pre-op conference in
another post).

This time unit system went a long way toward
keeping me on time (most of the time). Naturally,
there are always contingencies such as
emergencies, unanticipated complications treating
a given patient, a previous patient with a new
complaint, and the inevitable patient arriving
late. But these should be the exceptions, not the
rule. Some units were sometimes left intentionally
blank to allow for “catch-ups” and “breaks”. Yes,
we actually work more efficiently when there is
time for an occasional cup of coffee.

Joel Lang, DPM (retired), Cheverly, MD

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