The NHS is a bureaucratic mess that imposes a burden on general practice. If you let it influence how your practice is managed, you can get tied up in knots.
Overbearing requirements, often ill thought out, frequently instruct, and force you to do and work, in a way others want. If allowed, it can pervade everything you do, leaving a practice rigid with rules.
Having an excessive reliance on protocols and insisting that everything is done to follow a set procedure can strangle creativity and kill initiative. Checking each task is completed a required way slows everything down and can be demoralising.
It’s better to focus on the positive outcome needed rather than tying the practice up in an inflexible system of policies and protocols. This won’t impact safety, can significantly enhance quality and will keep your practice flexible and moving.
To keep your practice free:
Focus on positive outcomes and don’t be driven by rules.
Encourage new ideas and try different ways of working.
Reward initiative and don’t micromanage.
Let your team make decisions and don’t over instruct.
Have open doors and communicate face to face.
They aren't difficult changes and will free up a practice culture, so if you’re knotted up, untie your practice now.
Comments