Among them are the following:

• Hold meetings regularly
• Write an agenda — and follow it
• Have a facilitator run the meeting
• Get someone to record minutes
• Make sure your team members come to the meeting prepared

According to Jameson, meetings offer the opportunity for you to evaluate critical factors of your practice. She suggests you use the meeting time to measure the health and wellbeing of your practice, to review any unresolved business and projects that are under way, and to bring up new business.

To make sure that your gatherings are productive (not gripe sessions), Jameson recommends using a meeting facilitator. If there’s a dispute, she says, let the parties involved handle it on their own. “Do not bring it up at the team meeting,” Jameson recommends. It is important to assess on a consistent basis how effective your meetings are. To make sure your meetings are working? Ask yourself the following questions:

• Are your meetings helping you accomplishing goals?
• Do your meetings help set projects into motion?

Meetings are also a great opportunity to do role-playing exercises and to help your staff practice the right patient etiquette. And don’t forget, Jameson says, be sure to make your meetings fun and productive.