PMI's Responsibility Matrix
Allocation of responsibilities allows the practice leader to effectively lead the practice instead of being a cog in the wheel keeping the practice going. This allows them to focus on the bigger picture and leverage their expertise across the entire practice. More importantly, if done right it may even allow the physician leaders to see a few more patients- generating more revenue for the practice. Below is a link to a sample “Responsibility Matrix” that PMI provides clients after an onsite or remote assessment. This contains a list of the first 230+ items that someone needs to be responsible for in the practice. This list is not designed to be all-inclusive. Rather, it is to serve as a starting point to the following exercise:
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Make a list of all the items that need to be tended to within the practice. Everything from dealing with patient complaints to Human Resource issues.
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After every single item is listed, the practice should assign specific people responsible for each item on the list. Consideration should be given to group similar responsibilities together and assign them to the same person (Human Resources, IT, etc).
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Once all the responsibilities have been assigned, everyone should be held accountable for their new responsibilities. More importantly, if someone has concerns about the practice website, they should be directed to whoever is responsible for it. Nothing undermines this orderly process more than one individual tending to responsibilities assigned to another person.
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Share the list with everyone in the practice and continually update it as needed to reflect new items and/or changes in assignments. This document should be viewed as a “living document” that evolves over time.
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PMI clients who are most successful with this effort take the time to review the list on a periodic basis to ensure that responsibilities are evenly distributed as well as rotating various responsibilities each year. By rotating such responsibilities, it reduces anxiety when one of the people who has always tended to certain responsibilities is no longer with the practice.