3 Ways To Close Your Office From Christmas to the New Year
Whether you’re a practice owner or an associate doctor, structuring holiday hours can be tricky but something we must always consider when planning our year. There are generally three main schools of thought when it comes to closing a practice for the holidays:
Some docs hate to close the office because they fear they will lose production/money.
Some docs choose to take the week after Christmas for family time and vacation without worrying about the needs of the practice(production) or staff(no work no pay).
Some docs choose to take the week after Christmas off but planned ahead throughout the year to ensure they are able to meet the needs of the practice and staff(no work but vacation pay).
If you or the owner doc struggle with any of the first two schools of thought above, here are some ways to strike a balance:
Create a slightly longer work week
The truth is, most offices are slower towards the end of December. Create an end of year marketing plan for patients to book appointments in the first three weeks of the month. If you are currently working 4 days per week, consider moving to 5 days. The extra days can bring quality production.
Boost production in the preceding month/months
Identify the months where you can increase production to compensate to meet the practice needs for the last week.
Budget Ahead of Time
1)-Evaluate Your Payroll numbers (How much is needed to pay your staff and Bills) and determine the number of
days you need off;
and
2)-Set aside the amount of cash needed in advance (A little bit every month will do the trick)
Be mindful of your staff and compensate them. You will need their help to accomplish these goals. These are a few simple tricks we can employ to close our offices the week after Christmas. Hope this helps. Have a safe and Happy Holiday. See you guys in 2021!!!
