Don’t Let Complacency And A Fear Of Change Affect Your Practice

Are you familiar with the age-old tale of the frog and the pot of boiling water?  According to the story, if you place a frog directly into a pot of boiling water, it will immediately jump out. Well, wouldn’t you? However, if you put that frog in a pot of tepid water and gradually increase the heat while the frog is enjoying his soak, he will not notice the continual rise in temperature, become groggy to the point that he is unable to jump out and before he could say, “rbbbbt, plantar warts”… frog legs are on the menu.

The story has served as an analogy of sorts to the ability of people to react to change. It is something that I have seen firsthand with medical practices. As a consultant, I go into offices across the country to conduct efficiency and productivity assessments. While the authenticity of the frog’s cautionary tale is still under debate, the message it sends describes what many practices are experiencing today.

It is not unusual for a doctor to call me in to evaluate a successful practice. Those who do seek affirmation that they are on the right track but also look for new ideas that can take them to the next level. More frequently, it is the practice that lets small things slip into patterns of complacency that needs help. The more complacent things become, the more everyone begins accepting them as “the norm” and the more the practice continues to just maintain or fall behind.

It is a slippery slope because along the way, doctors lose their goals, staff loses interest and the “change is too hard” mentality takes over. After dealing with chaos for some period of time, they do not notice things slowly deteriorating around them. Leery of “jumping out” to make immediate changes, they often find themselves unable to get out from underneath a situation that is as destructive to them as the pot of slow-heating water is to that groggy frog. 

If doctors who find themselves in a similar situation can catch it before the water gets too unbearable, they can avoid reaching that point of no return. Truth is, moving from Point A (realization) to Point B (implementation) is not always easy. You can expect there will be hurdles along the way. These include getting sidetracked, getting sucked back into the “comfort zone,” having zero team support, not having the right team, getting locked into a “that’s not the way we used to do it” position, and even financial setbacks.

However, if caught in time, the right attitude and determination, renewed enthusiasm, better guidance, a clearer direction, workable policies and procedures, staff enthusiasm and cooperation can turn a struggling practice around. A motivated practice can jump-start a new beginning and emerge even stronger and more exceptional than ever before.

Is the water in your pot starting to feel a little too toasty? Perhaps your practice is in need of a reset? If you are not moving forward, you are standing still or falling behind. Take it from Kermit. Don’t learn your lesson the “hot” way.  Make changes now while you can before … it’s … too ... late!