The Office Manager, friend or foe?

[Mrs.Doctor305]

So here we are, we've survived 5 long years of residency as well as an additional year long fellowship. There's finally a light at the end of the tunnel...and it's not a train! Contracts have been signed, and DH is headed into private practice.

As some of you know, and the rest of you will, the credentialing & licensing process is a hoopie-loo and a giant pain in the butt. Even more so when you are moving from one state to the other. This process can literally take 3-6 months!

Anyhow, for the past 10 years, when it comes to paperwork, scheduling tests, applying for licenses, ect. I've always been the one to handle this for DH. So naturally, after he has signed his contract, I start working on the paperwork. Since this isn't something that can just be done over night, and I certainly don't want DH's new group to think he's blowing off these responsibilities, I have been sending weekly updates to the office manager. 'Hi, I hope you're having a great week, blah, blah, blah, this is where we are in the process, have a great day.' For whatever reason, she will never respond to me. She will in turn start a new email to my husband asking for something or another, which he immediately forwards to me to handle, which I do.

I'm pretty much at a loss here! I am not, by any means, trying to show up and take over, we haven't even moved yet! I'm just doing what I've always done to make sure DH is good to go on the start date of his contract. The last thing I want to do is piss this woman off and believe me, I would be more than happy to hand this crazy amount of paperwork over to her & let her deal with it, but she isn't on any release of his at all to be able to request transcripts and such.

I don't know what else to do. I really don't want things to start off on a sour note. Any suggestions?

[medpedspouse]

DH and I got the transcripts and such but the office manager at the pp did it all...which I am eternally grateful. Maybe she feels like you are trying to do her job?? I don't know. I would not not judge just yet because you have not gotten to know her. Her reference as to how the spouses are may be skewed by the spouses of the current/past docs. I know I was a totally different spouse than DH's partners. Both rarely went to any office function - one had young kids and was busy with that and the other was a physician with kids in various activities. I was the only one the clinic ever saw and were surprised that I brought lunch, bought admin/nurses day gifts and had an annual party at our house. I did not know any better - did not know I was a weirdo - I only knew that I needed to keep the staff that supports DH happy.

Maybe you can have your DH ask her what will be most helpful? She may only be used to working with the docs.

[HouseofWool]

Yep, I would definitely have your DH ask her about the level of assistance she would like.

That said, as a medical office manager, I would not necessarily want the spouse doing all of the credentialing stuff. If you miss something, my job is on the line. Yes, help filling out the initial applications would be great, but I would still want to vet them. Once they are submitted, it is really just a waiting game, 30, 60, 90, 120 day waits are the norm with the insurance game.

[diggitydot]

She may only be used to working with the docs.

That's probably a big part of the sitch. I've never done jack shit for any of DH's licensing paperwork. Ever. I'm sure your DH's office peeps are likely not accustomed to dealing with anyone other than the docs.

Also, check your spam folder. Maybe the OM tried to respond? Or maybe your emails are getting nailed by her spam filters? I dunno. Really, not a big deal, though.

[SuzySunshine]

DH and I were responsible for his licenses but his office staff took care of all credentialing, etc. They only dealt with him and he was told later it was for privacy reasons - if he wanted to pass something off to me, which he did, that was fine but they couldn't send it to me for legal reasons.

[ides]

We just did the parts they asked us to and as I was handling it all on our end when I had to send stuff I always sent it as dh.

[corn poffi]

Our practice managers would so not be okay with the spouse of a new hire. It's a professional environment, and dealing with the spouse instead of the physician is not exactly professional. No offense.

[GrayMatterWife]

Anyhow, for the past 10 years, when it comes to paperwork, scheduling tests, applying for licenses, ect. I've always been the one to handle this for DH. So naturally, after he has signed his contract, I start working on the paperwork. Since this isn't something that can just be done over night, and I certainly don't want DH's new group to think he's blowing off these responsibilities, I have been sending weekly updates to the office manager. 'Hi, I hope you're having a great week, blah, blah, blah, this is where we are in the process, have a great day.' For whatever reason, she will never respond to me. She will in turn start a new email to my husband asking for something or another, which he immediately forwards to me to handle, which I do.

I don't know what else to do. I really don't want things to start off on a sour note. Any suggestions?

First, do not worry about pissing off this chick. You job is not to make friends. It is to make sure that your hubbie is properly credentialed, etc.

I did the exact same thing for DH--and still do. He has zero--nothing--to do with anything related to his credentialing, licensing, or anything to do with his paycheck, benefits, reimbursements, etc. I handle all of that. His secretaries just "cc" me on their correspondence to him.

The solution is simple: have your DH send her an email stating:

"Dear Ms. ____, My wife assists me in all matters related to my licensing and credentialing. Please contact her directly and "cc" me with any inquiries, concerns or needs you may have. Thank you." and have him "cc" you on the email.

She works for him. She does not get to pick how she does her job. She does it the way he tells her to.

DH has not had to send such an email to his secretaries (they all know me and know the deal) but he has had to send similar emails to HR folks. They were not trying to be a pain; HR folks are not allowed to speak with to anyone other than the EE regarding the EE's terms of employment/benefits, etc. without written permission of the EE.

It does help that I am a lawyer, but you should be able to do this without being a lawyer.

[MsSassyBaskets]

I don't think I would ever send an email for DH in a professional setting. I didn't do anything like that when he was working a regular FT job before med school, and I won't when he's a Dr. either. I might help him draft something or remind him to send a note in certain situations, but I would never send something on his behalf. I also don't schedule professional things for him or fill out paperwork for him. That's his professional responsibility and has nothing to do with me.

[spotty_dog]

It's nice of you to help out, but I think that repeatedly having her direct inquiries to your DH and not CC you, is meant as a subtle indicator that she's not comfortable with this level of involvement from you. And if your DH is not replying back either, but just silently forwarding her messages to you? That feels like a snub. You don't want to be offending people before he starts.

I also don't know about the weekly unsolicited updates. I certainly hope that the new practice won't assume he's blowing off his responsibility if he doesn't give them a steady stream of reassurance...they hired him with the understanding that he's competent, right? He's not going to report back to the manager that he's attending his clinic days or showing up to the operating room? He's just, you know, going to *do* his *job*...which includes handling his end of licensing and credentialing. I would worry that the regular correspondence could be undermining in some way.

[Pollyanna]

I don't think I would ever send an email for DH in a professional setting. I didn't do anything like that when he was working a regular FT job before med school, and I won't when he's a Dr. either. I might help him draft something or remind him to send a note in certain situations, but I would never send something on his behalf. I also don't schedule professional things for him or fill out paperwork for him. That's his professional responsibility and has nothing to do with me.

This is me too. It would never dawn on me to do otherwise.

[Phoebe]

My husband and I share a home email account, eventhough it has my name on it. He puts it on his CV because he hates computers. He forwards emails from work to home and sometimes I send things off for him when it includes paperwork.

[diggitydot]

She works for him. She does not get to pick how she does her job. She does it the way he tells her to.

That's not how it works everywhere. The OM in DH's clinic in no way works for him. She works for the group and the only doc she answers to is the managing partner, not the 9 other providers in the clinic. I would recommend not having the perspective that various staff members should just do what and how they're told by the docs. That is not the dynamic everywhere and will set someone up for a metric shit ton of hatred if that is not the expected behavior.

The only person who works for DH directly is his nurse and she fucking rocks. She asked very early on how he wants things done and now takes care of everything before he even has to think. Hell, she even makes sure that he has food on days when he's too busy to take 30 seconds to text me and ask me to bring him lunch. I absolutely heart that woman. She is awesome and I'm perpetually thankful that DH got so lucky with his first nurse at this clinic.

[corn poffi]

That's not how it works everywhere. The OM in DH's clinic in no way works for him. She works for the group and the only doc she answers to is the managing partner, not the 9 other providers in the clinic. I would recommend not having the perspective that various staff members should just do what and how they're told by the docs. That is not the dynamic everywhere and will set someone up for a metric shit ton of hatred if that is not the expected behavior.

This. So much this

[WolfpackWife]

This. So much this

(No horse in this race as far as my own DH goes--yet--, but I have worked in conjunction with a medical office) I was also wondering about the drawbacks of that mindset, or how often that rings true in private practices because as a part-time student assistant in a peds office during college and again working alongside the Cards dept but not IN it, none of the "front office" staff--including the office manager worked FOR the docs. Just running their every day scheduling/office needs. In the hospital setting they worked for the department directors...during my student assistant job there was an entire administrative management area to which all of the office managers/medical support staff reported. Never to the docs.