Every OD deserves to take a week off to travel, spend time with their family, or just destress and return to work renewed. However, it can be hard on your practice and business goals to leave the practice without an OD. Hiring a replacement takes a bit of research, interviewing, and trust, but it's worth it if you want to take regular vacations.
We've compiled a few tips for keeping peace of mind during your vacation. If you can afford to close your practice to patients, we also explore ideas for keeping your staff occupied without an OD.
3 Ways to Take Your Vacation
Admin WorkInstead of worrying about losing loyal patients, close your practice and pay your staff for accomplishing the tasks they can't get to when seeing patients. They can organize the office files and inventory, negotiate lower pricing with vendors, do a deep clean of equipment and furnishings, and maybe even get a day off if you're gone a long time.
Local Substitution
Search for locums through either your local optometric association, fellow group practice associates, or apps like Locum Club or Steady. Take some time to meet them beforehand to show them your practice, workflow, billing, and inventory preferences. Once you develop a trusting relationship, a locum could be the best substitution while you're on vacation.
Intuitive Software
Find a nearby doctor either familiar with your EHR or use technology that is easy to learn and doesn't require too many workarounds. In general, you should be using software that has a short and simple learning curve in case of emergencies. Without worrying about intensive training, you can trust a locum or OD friend to handle emergencies with loyal and new patients.
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