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Be creative with performance rewards. Give movie tickets to employees who go “above and beyond” the call of duty.

Maintain a “murmur log” to record compliments and complaints from your patients.

Assign one clinical staff member to check the expiration dates on all prescription samples once a month, and keep a log of these inspections.

I have started asking my female patients to bring their own bathrobes for well-woman examinations.

Measure your cycle time from patient entry to patient exit. If you can keep it to less than 1 hour, you will keep more happy patients-and physicians.

Remember, time is money. Make sure that your billing office works the electronic claims transmission edit report within 3 days.

Ask your billing staff to place appointment reminder calls to patients who have an account balance.

For pre-authorizations and referrals, get the name of the person who approves the service, and document the time and date.

Make sure you are paid for authorized services.

Always make sure that you work all of your accounts each month.

I try to practice random acts of kindness with our office staff.

If, when you suggest an improvement, someone in your practice responds, "That's not the way we do things," charge that person 25 cents on the spot.

Giving out money isn't the only way to reward your employees.

Have someone write on the charge ticket what time each patient checks in.

If you’ve already bent over backwards to set up a payment plan for self-pay patients, don’t cut further into your cash flow by mailing them a statement every month.

Don’t appeal claims worth very little.

If you discover a patient changed insurers, take a close look at the effective date of the insurance.

Consider having a friend or family member evaluate your practice as a “mystery shopper.”

Caring for a patient with diarrhea that may be caused by Clostridium difficile.