"When a physician joins your practice, you want to be able to give him or her in-depth feedback," says Keith C. Borglum, a consultant with Professional Management and Marketing in Santa Rosa, CA. "The same goes for a new PA, NP, or nurse midwife. Often feedback is too limited; it comes in the form of passing remarks, like 'You did a good job with that patient,' or 'Your chart documentation is incomplete.' As a result, the newcomer doesn't have good information about his progress, or hard feelings build up in the office because problems aren't addressed."

The evaluation sheet below, from Medical Practice Forms: Every Form You Need to Succeed, by Borglum and Diane M. Cate, can be used to smooth a new physician or physician extender into your practice. Borglum recommends that the supervising or hiring physician evaluate new doctors, PAs, and NPs monthly for three months, then quarterly until the end of the first year. "By identifying problem areas and rectifying them quickly, you give these people a greater chance to succeed," he notes.

Resist the temptation to rate anyone "excellent" or "very good" across the board, Borglum says. "Every person on the planet can improve in some way, and it's better to present a balanced picture."

Use the blank spaces on the form to add items as needed in your practice.

—Senior Editor
Gail Garfinkel Weiss

This evaluation sheet is available in:   To view the form in PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your system. If you do not have this free program, click on the icon below to link to the Adobe download page. To view the form in Word you must have Word 2000 or better. If you don't have this program you can download the free Microsoft Word 97/2000 Viewer. (You cannot edit an open document in Word Viewer. However, you can copy text to the Clipboard to paste it in other applications). Other forms and patient handouts are available in the Clip and Copy section of our Web site at www.memag.com .

Gail Weiss. Clip and Copy: Toward better senior healthcare. Medical Economics Jan. 9, 2004;81:96.