I started my lean practice as a micropractice. Which means, I was taking care of every aspect of running the practice by myself- without any employees, independent contractors or third parties to help me out.
It was a steep learning curve but in hindsight, it was fantastic. It gave me a 360 degree view of practice management and taught me more than I ever knew was possible to learn. Thanks, Google!
Gradually, as the practice built up, I found myself handling administrative tasks in the evenings and over weekends. That was not my goal with the practice. So, I decided to buy back my time by hiring some help.
Because I see patients only two days a week, I decided that a virtual assistant, who would handle multiple tasks, would be the best fit for my practice.
Why I decided to hire a Virtual Assistant
My patient volume was not large enough to warrant a different person for every role. An in-person staff would probably expect to fulfill one or two main roles at the most. What I needed was an extension of me. Except for the doctoring bit, of course.
Also, with an in-person staff, I would be limited to the local talent pool available in my area. And, it is not easy to find good people who want to work the hard, long hours in healthcare- when they could just as easily find something easier in another industry for the same salary.
Unfortunately, due to constant reimbursement cuts, salaries in healthcare have not remained competitive and therefore staffing is a real burden for many practices. In my neck of the woods, a couple of years back, even the hospital systems, with their deep pockets were not able to retain medical assistants. That leaves small practices in an even more precarious position.
A virtual assistant usually works as an independent contractor and not as an employee of the practice. So, we are not responsible for offering them benefits, such as paid time off, health insurance or matching retirement contributions. Don’t get me wrong- I’m not opposed to workers getting those benefits. One day, if I decide that my practice needs an employee, I will gladly step up to providing those perks to someone who will be vital to its success.
Medical Virtual Assistant Staffing Agencies
I decided to go with an offshore virtual assistant because it was significantly more reasonable to do so. We’re talking a difference of $10/hour or less, compared to $20-$25 or higher. At the latter price point, an in-person staff makes more sense.
I thought it more sensible to go with an agency than to look for a virtual assistant on my own. I was not sure I would be able to trust my vetting skills for a person claiming to be who they are online. I was happy to outsource the finding and vetting to a business that was doing this already.
I went with an agency that specializes in medical virtual assistants. Remote administrative assistants are now all the rage in many industries and therefore agencies that help you find a virtual assistant are everywhere.
An agency that specializes in medical virtual assistants will focus on the unique needs we have in healthcare.
Their talent pool often has candidates with nursing and pharmacist degrees. Their background education makes them familiar with many aspects of the job. These folks prefer to work as virtual assistants because they make more money doing so than working in their trained roles within their local healthcare systems. So, these are smart people and can therefore execute simple administrative tasks fairly easily.
These companies have some basic training for their virtual assistant candidates. Mind you, this training is fairly basic. I’ve gone through more than one VA by this time- and have found that they need to be thoroughly trained once they start with you- whether its the EMR you use or the policies and procedures you have in place at your practice.
These agencies usually have cybersecurity and HIPAA training protocols in place. They also assist you with keeping track of your VA’s hours, such as with a time tracking device.
The medical virtual assistant companies vary in one important respect. Some of them will sign a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with you and some will not.
When an entity covered by HIPAA- such as a medical practice- does business with another entity and Protected Health Information (PHI) will be shared, it is important to have a signed BAA in place. This makes the other party liable for their actions in case of a privacy breach.
The virtual assistant companies that do not sign a Business Associate Agreement state that they are not directly dealing with PHI- and therefore they are not liable. But if you find your virtual assistant through them and in fact, pay your virtual assistant through them, as well- it only makes sense that they should, in fact, accept liability for the actions of any virtual assistant you hire through them.
In such cases, you are actually entering into an agreement with the agency as a contractor and the virtual assistant is only a subcontractor.
But, not all the virtual assistant staffing agencies agree.
If the company will not sign a Business Associate Agreement, it is good practice to sign one with the virtual assistant you hire. The problem is, it is not really enforceable with an individual who is not U.S. person. We just hope it works as a deterrent.
Another important area virtual assistant staffing agencies vary is in the payment model. Most of them charge you an hourly fee for the virtual assistant’s work. Of that, they keep (often a substantial) portion and pay the rest to the virtual assistant.
The other business model is charging an upfront finder’s fee to help you find a virtual assistant who is a right fit for your practice. This is more expensive to you in the short-term but probably balances out in the longer term. It is also fairer to the virtual assistant- and that may mean better quality candidates who are happier with their compensation.
Questions to Ask the Virtual Assistant Staffing Agencies
I looked up a few virtual assistant staffing companies online and then contacted them. They are fairly easy to schedule a call with. I had a list of questions when I spoke to their sales teams.
-How long were they doing this?
-Where was their business located?
-Where were their virtual assistants located?
-How do they vet their virtual assistant candidates?
-What were some of the qualifications of their candidates?
-Did they offer part-time as well as full-time virtual assistant options?
-What training did their candidates receive?
-Are the candidates HIPAA-compliant and how does the company ensure that the virtual assistant remain compliant while working with me?
-What processes do they use to track the VA’s work- that they’re actually working the hours that they’re supposed to?
-What options, if any, do they have on days the VA does not come in to work? For example, are they able to provide a replacement on such days?
-What is their pricing for their virtual assistant services?
In general, I found that most of these businesses were located in the united States- and therefore a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) signed with the company (if the company will do this) would be valuable.
The virtual assistants are often located in the Philippines, India, Pakistan and South America. They are often trained in one of the allied healthcare fields.
Most offer only full-time virtual assistants, with options for 30-40 hour work weeks. There are limited options for getting a replacement for days when your own virtual assistant may be unavailable. This is similar to having an in-office staff member: if they do not show up to work one day, your options for an immediate replacement are limited.
Most candidates have HIPAA training certification. The agency will also usually provide a background check. For workflow purposes, they will provide their virtual assistants with secure VPN and a time-tracker device.
The agency will send you a few candidates to select from. You get to interview them, usually by videoconference, and pick one. Or ask for more candidates.
Some companies will give you a day or two to train the virtual assistant you select, before you start paying them. Of course, training takes way longer than that- so most of it is done on-the-job.
So, this is how I found my virtual assistant. I hope you find it helpful. Next time, we’ll go into how I trained her and how I utilize my virtual assistant in my practice.
