AlderVeterinary Group

Staff field guide / Desk School

Good care.A good close.

The last thing your shift needs is a mystery.
Three small routines for the people keeping a clinic moving.

NORTHSIDE / RIVERSIDE / HILLCREST

Learn / Practice / Carry it forward

A shift worth
handing over.

Read the routine. Make the call. A correct practice answer completes the module. Practice the administrative handoff under your clinic’s approved procedures.

Opening handoff / Front desk + shift lead

Not complete

Start with what didn't finish.

  1. Review the prior close with the incoming lead. Read every open callback, payment question, and appointment change.
  2. Check each item has an owner, a next action, and a due time. Confirm the owner is on shift; reassign with acknowledgment if not.
  3. Flag anything overdue before opening. Route clinical concerns immediately to the clinical team under the clinic's approved escalation protocol.
A Riverside callback is due at 9:00 a.m. The teammate named on it is out. What's the right handoff?

Exception queue / Coordinator + reviewer

Not complete

A queue, not a guessing game.

  1. Record the exception in the approved system with a record reference, category, and clear next action. Don't copy patient details into unapproved tools.
  2. Assign an authorized reviewer and a due time. Clinical questions go to a clinician; billing discrepancies go to the designated billing reviewer.
  3. Before handoff, review overdue items with the lead. Close an item only when its resolution and reviewer are recorded.
A Hillcrest visit has a payment total that doesn't match the recorded invoice. The client has left. What now?

Close checklist / Closing lead + incoming lead

Not complete

Close the shift. Not the loose ends.

  1. Reconcile the day's approved administrative checklist: callbacks, appointment changes, payment exceptions, and owner confirmations.
  2. Separate resolved items from pending work. For every pending item, document the dependency, named owner, next action, and due time.
  3. Get the incoming lead's acknowledgment in the approved handoff system. Follow the clinic's separate clinical, security, and controlled-substance close procedures.
Northside is closing. A requested result is still pending and needs clinician review tomorrow. Can the shift close?

The operating plan / Six weeks

Start with
one clinic.

The desk and field guide are ready to try. The six-week plan starts at Northside, with local policy and privacy review before use.

Six-week operating plan
WeekWork + accountable roleExit evidenceStatus
1Make the work visibleGroup ops lead: review the desk prototype and this field guide with each location lead.Desk and field guide available now. Pilot entry still requires local policy and privacy review.Ready to practice

Desk + training

2Establish the baselineNorthside lead: observe five opening and closing shifts. Finance partner: agree loaded labor-cost assumptions.Timestamp definitions, workload counts, staffing context, and approved baseline sheet.Next in a pilot
3Rehearse before live useTraining lead: run all three scenarios with the Northside desk and clinical lead. Approve escalation boundaries.Observed handoff exercise, corrected procedure, named reviewer roster.Next in a pilot
4Try one locationNorthside coordinator: use approved routines on five comparable shifts. Keep the existing clinical record authoritative.Daily exception audit, acknowledgment log, and staff debrief. Stop for an unsafe routing gap.Next in a pilot
5Check the fit elsewhereRiverside and Hillcrest leads: rehearse local variants. People lead: review the proposed role packages below.Location-specific signoff; compensation, coverage, and licensure details approved before any job posting.Next in a pilot
6Make the continue / change / stop callGroup ops lead + finance partner: compare matched shifts and review safety, workload, and staff feedback.Written decision with limitations. Expansion requires each location's approval, not a prettier dashboard.Next in a pilot

Measurement plan / Handoffs

Did the handoff hold?

Accountable
Location lead collects. Group ops lead reviews weekly. Clinical lead reviews escalation safety.
Primary measures
Acknowledged handoffs ÷ all handoffs due; overdue exceptions ÷ exceptions due; elapsed minutes from exception creation to authorized resolution.
Collection + comparison
Use approved-system timestamps and a daily lead audit. Compare week 2 baseline with week 4 shifts matched by location, staffing, and visit volume. Report denominators and unresolved cases, not only averages.
Guardrail
Review missed clinical escalations and duplicated work at every debrief. A faster close is not a win if clinical routing becomes less safe.

Measurement plan / Time and cost

Count the time.
Then count the cost.

Accountable
Coordinator records administrative task time. Finance partner validates payroll, software, and training costs.
Primary measures
Administrative minutes per comparable close; paid overtime hours; implementation and recurring operating costs.
Calculation
Estimated capacity value = observed minutes released ÷ 60 × approved loaded hourly rate. Net cost change = comparable paid labor and operating cost before minus after, less setup and training costs.
Reporting rule
Report released capacity separately from cash savings. Do not call time saved a payroll reduction unless paid costs actually fall. Measure actual changes before reporting a result.

People / Recruitment campaign

Good people.
Clear expectations.

Three roles. Three different kinds of attention. Each role package sets out the work, the handoff, and the support to agree before hiring.

Front desk recruiting campaign: You had me at hello. The first kind voice matters.

Recruiting / Front desk

The first kind voice.

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Clinic coordinator recruiting campaign: A place for every loose end. And a person who sees it through.

Recruiting / Clinic coordinator

Nothing left to guess.

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Veterinary technician recruiting campaign: Less chasing. More caring. Your skill belongs with the patient.

Recruiting / Veterinary technician

Skill, with room to work.

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Before the first application.

Confirm pay, coverage, licensure, and the application route with the hiring lead before publication.