Providing IDD services in the modern world is a lot more than just showing up at a client’s home. Staffing, authorizations, paperwork, billing, and payroll are just a small portion of the obstacles the average IDD provider deals with every single day. With all of these tasks piling up, it can feel like there’s not enough hours in a day to take care of everything.
However, by being more intentional and taking advantage of the plethora of resources available, like the ConnectCare cloud-based documentation system, even the most time-strapped administrators can get things done with time to spare. Continue reading to learn more about our favorite time-management tips and take back control of your schedule today.
Get Organized
A huge time waster in any office is disorganization. Even if you’re only spending 5% of your day looking for misplaced documents, that’s 8 hours or one entire workday of each month spent doing nothing but searching! Imagine what you and your team could actually get done during that time if office documents were more organized.
Use these organizational tips to help your office run more smoothly:
Implement organization procedures from day one
Opt for digital files over paperwork when possible
Use large, noticeable labels to direct staff on where to file documents
No catch-all piles! Have a place designated for every type of paper the office encounters so there’s no paperwork to shuffle through later
Delegate all paper filing to one person in the office so everything is filed using the same method (alphabetical, reverse chronological, etc.)
Use a shared network drive for office files and documents everyone needs to access/view
Digital organization is important too! Arrange files in logical folders so they’re easy to find later
Use descriptive names for files and documents
Train all staff on best digital organization practices, including how to effectively search for files
Encourage Efficiency
It’s not enough for just one person in your office to operate efficiently. Efficiency should be encouraged for all employees, but it’s more than just giving the occasional pep talk. Areas of inefficiency must be identified and then actionable steps implemented to correct the causes.
Some popular ways to encourage efficiency at your agency are:
Implement a rewards program for employees that come up with or practice new efficiency measures.
Start an office-wide time tracking test to identify areas of inefficiency, then take steps to improve those areas.
Make employees comfortable with updated, ergonomic office equipment
Breaks are important! A break room designed with relaxation in mind will give staff space to unwind and refresh during the day.
Be firm with deadlines and consequences for missing them.
Have realistic expectations of what your staff can actually accomplish in an average workday. Unrealistic expectations can make employees stop trying, as they know they’ll never live up to them.
Delegate
No matter how motivated and talented an administrator may be, they just can’t do everything that needs to be done to keep an IDD agency running smoothly. Smart management knows to delegate tasks and responsibilities to capable staff in order to use company resources to their fullest potential. Follow these guidelines for strategic delegation:
Delegate based on who is mostly likely to do the job correctly and on time. There’s no room for favoritism in delegation!
Explain the delegated task clearly and step-by-step. Written instructions are preferable, especially if it’s the first time you’re delegating (Add a “Delegation Instructions” folder to your shared network drive with files for each delegated task so everyone will be on the same page)
Only delegate tasks as allowed by law though, as some tasks require specific training or education.
Don’t just forget the task once delegated…delegation requires follow-up by the administrator. They are ultimately responsible for the outcome of any task they’ve delegated to others.
But avoid micromanaging. If you’re that involved in the task, just do it yourself to prevent frustrating your staff or making them feel unappreciated.
Avoid Procrastination
It is so easy to fall into the vicious cycle of procrastination especially when you have so many different things going on at one time. Procrastination is a time management killer and the longer you procrastinate on a task, the harder it will be to catch up on it.
Tackle procrastination with these pro tips:
Adopt a “Do it now, not later” attitude
Delegate tasks when appropriate
Break large projects up into smaller, more manageable subtasks
On the flip side, acting too quickly can also be a bad thing at times. Give yourself time to consider all aspects before making important decisions.
Block Off Your Schedule to Avoid Multitasking
Many people find that by organizing their schedule into blocks, they are more productive. Schedule blocking is simply designating blocks of time to certain tasks and only those tasks.
For example, your blocked schedule might look something like this:
9am to 10am: Email and phone
10am to 10:30am: Daily staff meeting
10:30am to 11am: Complaint resolution
11am to 12pm: Billing tasks
12pm to 1pm: Lunch
1pm to 2pm: Payroll/HR tasks
2pm to 3pm: Authorization denials
3pm to 4pm: Free time
4pm to 5pm: Prep for tomorrow
There’s no wrong way to block off your schedule and it can help you avoid the misguided notion that multitasking is efficient. In fact, multitasking means you’re not giving any one thing your full attention and therefore not doing it to your best ability. Instead, hyperfocus on the task at hand.
Share your blocked schedule with all office staff (a shared online calendar is a great way to do this) and request not to be interrupted during blocked off time unless it is an emergency. Be sure to include some free time in each day for non-urgent issues.
Reduce Paperwork
Let’s face it…traditional paper documentation is a waste of time and resources. Not only does it take a human to sort it and file it, it also drives up supply expenses with reams of paper, ink and toner, and multiple filing cabinets. Not to mention the space it takes up in the office! Do yourself and everyone else in your office a huge favor and opt for digital files and documents whenever possible. Most states are slowly requiring that everything be submitted electronically and we anticipate that soon they will all also require that all documentation be collected digitally as well. The Electronic Visit Verification or EVV requirements that some agencies are now dealing with is evidence of the push toward digital recordkeeping.
Get ahead of the game by implementing an electronic documentation system before your state requires it. Why? There are so many reasons:
When electronic documentation is first mandated, your state/LME/MCO will be slammed with calls and emails from other providers in your area needing help with implementation. Your questions may go days, weeks, or possibly months unanswered even with a mandated implementation date looming.
Electronic documentation is more accurate mostly because it can be collected as goals are being completed, not after the worker’s shift is over.
Reputable electronic documentation systems have safeguards in place to avoid errors that could cost your agency thousands during an audit.
Those same error safeguards mean your office staff will spend less time reviewing and correcting data, freeing them up for other revenue-generating tasks.
Adaptive electronic documentation systems like ConnectCare allow staff to enter their time in and time out just one time, and it is populated everywhere it needs to go (billing, payroll, data grid sheets, etc.). This reduces the amount of time your staff spend entering their data and their frustration at having to enter the same information in multiple places/systems.
Since electronic documentation systems can generate reports based on data/goal progress, everyone can get a visual representation of which goals are working and which ones need tweaking.
Electronic documentation systems allow client families, guardians, etc. to log in and view their loved one’s progress, allowing them to be more invested in their day-to-day care.
The benefits of a well-executed electronic documentation system could go on and on. The point is that by transitioning away from pen and paper documentation in favor of an electronic system, you’ll be freeing up agency time and resources while maintaining audit compliance and saving man hours. You can’t manage company time much better than that!
Take the Next Step in Improving Your Agency’s Time Management Today!
We can’t help you renovate your break room or alphabetize your filing cabinets, but we can help you take a huge step towards better time management with ConnectCare – an electronic documentation system designed just for small to medium sized agencies like yours. Instead of building software that can do everything under the sun, we took our own advice and hyper-focused on just documentation. Because let’s face it…without the proper documentation backing up your billing, you’re taking the chance of a costly payback during an audit.
If you’re ready to conquer time management, we would love to show you how ConnectCare can reduce paperwork, ease stress, and save money by streamlining your agency’s service documentation. Contact Jeff Wilt, CEO of ConnectCare, at (614) 734-4719 or jeff@connectcareonline.com to schedule a demo of our innovative, cloud-based documentation system!
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