One of the biggest pain-points for physicians is the paucity of time allowed for patient visits in the office. Unless you own and manage your practice, it’s likely that someone else controls your schedule.

Despite these constraints, there are some fairly simple things that you can do to optimize the time that you have available.

By focusing your attention on taking care of your patients, empowering your staff to manage routine tasks, and automating some of your EHR processes, you may be able to free up valuable time. Over the course of the work day, these small gains can improve your ability to care for your patients, reduce your wait times, and end the day feeling more in control of your time and attention.

 Pre-visit Information Collection

• Assign your medical assistant (MA) to briefly gather basic symptoms, including duration and intensity, before you enter the room. This has the added benefit of making the MA a valued part of the care team.

• Have your MA ask patients to list their top three questions and concerns. This way, you can start with pertinent issues, and be aware of any unexpected concerns. This won’t eliminate the “by-the-ways” doorknob questions, but it can help.

• Review these issues before walking into the room so you are prepared and can direct the conversation appropriately.

Standardization and Checklists:

• Develop simple checklists for common diagnoses to help guide your patients through symptom description, potential treatments, and follow-up steps. This documentation may also help when it comes to pre-authorization.

• Use protocol and instruction lists for routine procedures, common surgeries, or testing to streamline the process and maintain consistency.

Efficient Communication Techniques:

• Make use of the Teach-Back Method to confirm patient understanding quickly by having them repeat back information about their diagnosis or treatment plan. It might take an extra minute or so, but you’re likely to save time in the long run by addressing misunderstandings at the outset.

• Implement closed-loop communication techniques to ensure tasks like tests ordered or referrals made are understood. In closed-loop communication, the person receiving information repeats it back to make sure the message is understood correctly, and the sender confirms to “close the loop.”

Technology and Tools:

• Utilize EMR templates and macros for common visit types to expedite documentation

• Recommend or create patient education resources to reduce time spent on common issues, reduce post-visit in-box messages and focus more on specific concerns.

Delegate Simple Tasks:

• Delegate routine prescription refills and diagnostic test orders to nursing staff or MAs to free up time for complex decision-making.

• Assign follow-up tasks, such as checking if a patient has completed a test or started a medication, to designated team members.

Optimize Scheduling Practices:

• If possible, incorporate short buffer times every couple of hours to handle any overflow or unexpected delays.

• Whenever feasible, schedule patients with similar needs in consecutive slots to minimize mental switch costs and preparation time.

Structured Patient Interactions:

• If possible, sit down facing the patient to create an impression of focus and interest.

• Begin each visit by asking the patient what they aim to achieve during the appointment, directing the conversation efficiently. This also lets the patient know that you are focused on their needs, and can help to build trust. Over time, that may also reduce unnecessary messages to your inbox.

While you may not be able to fully control your schedule, putting these strategies into play can significantly free up some of the limited time you have with each patient. As a result, you’ll enhance both patient satisfaction and the quality of your care. And ultimately, your own satisfaction may improve.

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