As a clinic owner, you wear many hats. And let’s face it, you didn’t start your business excited about the piles of administrative work that would await you. While you realize some of these admin tasks come with the territory, your time is far too valuable for bookkeeping.
Practically speaking, many clinic operators struggle to get a handle on their accounting and fail to have a good understanding of their clinic’s financial health.
The best way out of this is to find a reliable third party to manage your bookkeeping. Ideally, this part-time resource will deliver good quality monthly reporting so you have the financial visibility and clarity you need to spot opportunities for improvement. Plus, you’ll save time every month that can be spent in other areas of the clinic that need your attention.
If you are planning to hire a bookkeeper for your clinic, here are a few things that you should look out for.
Technology expertise
Bookkeepers come with a variety of skills.
Today, technology is moving fast in the accounting industry with new apps being developed all of the time. Consider apps like JaneApp and Cliniko that are used for scheduling, charts, and virtual appointments. Many of these apps have integrations with accounting software.
A bookkeeper who understands these capabilities will be able to quickly adapt their process to take advantage of these integrations to minimize data entry, improve accuracy, and obtain better insights on clinic performance.
Your EMR (electronic medical record) system continues to be an important source of data. It is important to ensure that revenue is captured accurately in the statements. A skilled bookkeeper should be able to find the right monthly reports in your EMR and ensure that data gets appropriately captured in the accounting software to reflect the revenue earned in a relevant time period.
Scalability
Many clinic operators today are looking at their business as an opportunity to create their own destiny and to leverage their skill set to become an entrepreneur. With this comes key decisions around scale and process. You need to build the right infrastructure so that your business runs like a well-oiled machine, giving you the insight you need on demand.
Look for a bookkeeper that has scale in their system already. Ask potential candidates if they will be able to accommodate you when you have 2, 3 or 4 clinics, and get an understanding of what that process would look like.
Payroll expertise
If not done correctly, payroll can be a major point of contention between employees and employers. It is important to have a payroll process in place where vacation is tracked, benefits are appropriately reflected on employee pay stubs, and remittances are calculated and remitted accurately and on time.
In recent months, wage subsidies have also been important for many clinics that have been forced to close down due to COVID-19. Proper tracking and timely remittances are critical to avoid an audit.
Additionally, certain Canadian provinces have introduced employer health taxes on employers of certain sizes that need to be accounted for through payroll.
Having a bookkeeper who can also provide payroll expertise is convenient, and essential, for successful clinic operators. This expertise can save you many headaches by ensuring your payroll compliance is taken care of.
Running a clinic is not for the faint of heart. It challenges you every day and presents no shortage of problems. Maybe it’s time to put your mind at ease with better bookkeeping.
Learn more about Enkel’s experience managing bookkeeping and payroll for health and wellness clinics.
