HR Management

When operating a private practice managing staff can take up much of your precious time and this can be stressful. Our HR Management frees up hours in your week, confirms you are compliant, lets you avoid stressful HR issues and ensures your staff are well-trained, productive, and motivated.     

Great staff are the cornerstone of your private practice, but effectively managing and motivating staff can be tricky for busy doctors who are often away from their rooms. Research has indicated that today’s staff need the following attributes from a workplace to stay – an opportunity to grow, to feel valued by their principal/s and to want to work for a practice that shows genuine interest in the welfare of the community. As the principal of your private practice, you need to pay attention to these three components if you are to retain your team and ensure a positive workplace culture. Our HR service is dedicated to achieving these outcomes for your staff and in doing so your practice becomes a happy, efficient, and profitable business, thus satisfying your needs as a clinician also. 

We find as doctors, you handle the day-to-day running of the practice well, but when sticky situations need to be handled or industrial relations requirements must be met, you need support. The RWS staff management team has got your back and is there to step in to provide this support when needed. Even at rooms where there is a Practice Manager employed, we find you need help as often the manager does not have the time, skills or training to undertake HR Management. Many Practice Managers tell us they are grateful for our assistance as they find HR situations stressful and feel out of their depth. 

Outsourcing to RWS has a host of further benefits.

The benefits that come from utilising the RWS HR service are:

  • More time seeing patients rather than getting overly involved in staffing issues
  • Avoid feeling uncomfortable in this area by having external involvement
  • Business training can tailored to the specific needs of your staff
  • You can cherry-pick what you and your team may need from the extensive training modules we offer.
  • You can choose how you wish to be assisted.  We can advise only OR we can also implement. 

The RWS (Rooms with Style) HR Service is designed to handle staffing matters and requirements for you. We can provide advice so you can handle your own staff management, or we can handle situations as they arise and ensure regulations are met. If there is a Practice Manager at the practice, we can empower them to undertake staff management tasks and responsibilities.  

Our time-poor doctors enjoy this support knowing we will attend to their staffing situations as they arise, ensure HR obligations are met and will keep them informed and up-to-date regarding changes to the award and contractual requirements. 

We are happy to meet with you to hear more about your practice. From there we can suggest ways we can be of assistance to meet your needs.

HR Management Services:

 

HR Maintenance Package: Essential Support for Your Team  

Our flexible and bespoke HR packages are crafted to address and streamline your essential HR needs in a cost-effective way. These strategies have been designed to address 80% of the common HR challenges, providing you with reliable ongoing support, without overextending resources. While it’s not a full-service solution for every issue, these are tailored to provide practical, impactful and budget-friendly solutions to your primary practice needs.  

Key Benefits:  

  • Impactful Solutions: Access a targeted range of tailored HR services to promote a positive workplace culture.  
  • Cost-Effective: Focus on key HR areas, to minimise the most common causes of employee disputes and costly settlements.  
  • Streamlined Processes: Timely reviews and updates to keep your practice efficient and focused.  
  • Expert Guidance: An HR Manager that is experienced in the medical industry, thus providing relevant compliance updates and advice.  

Inclusions:  

  • Employment Contract Updates: Keeping contracts current and FairWork compliant.  
  • Wage Advice: Ensure fair and compliant compensation.  
  • 3- and 6-Month Reviews: Regular check-ins to assess staff performance, deliver feedback and discuss probation.   
  • Annual Appraisals: Structured evaluations to support employee growth.  
  • Fair Work ACT and NES Updates: Stay informed about regulatory changes.  
  • Practice Closure Notification: Leave advice for the Christmas closure.  
  • Position Description Updates: Including role titles, duties and responsibilities.   
  • Growth Strategy Meeting and Action Plan: Tailored plans for staff development.  
  • Training Modules: Access to various training resources to engage and upskill your team.  

For further information on inclusions and pricing, please contact our team. With our HR Maintenance Package, you can confidently manage your practice while we handle your HR needs

Performance management and termination

Dealing with staff when they are underperforming and potentially need to be terminated from the practice can be stressful and it is difficult for doctors to find time for this when you are busy attending to patients. At RWS we find most doctors are not across the correct processes that must be followed to be FairWork compliant when performance managing or looking to terminate a staff member. Both processes can be upsetting to the under-performing employee, stressful for you and can create unrest at the practice. RWS completes these processes for you and educates you regarding what is lawful/unlawful in these situations. 

The process typically operates as below;

  • RWS will provide advice regarding the situation at hand and how it should be handled 
  • Together we decide the best path forward before any actions are implemented  
  • Implementation and reporting occurs 
  • RWS complete all required legal protocols and documents all actions 
  • RWS can provide support for other staff members if needed 

Adherence to FairWork requirements is essential for performance management and potential terminations. At RWS we recommend we provide support for you in these areas to ensure you are protected.

Contracts and compliance

RWS provides you with employment contracts relevant to the roles at your practice and specific to the Health and Health Services Award. Contracts are personalised and ensure that other items uniquely relevant to your practice are reflected in the employment contracts. We also provide your staff with required information from FairWork Australia which you are obliged to give as part of our staff management processes.

Employment contracts are a vital part of effective practice staff management. They ensure your practice is compliant and set a tone of expectation and fairness. This contributes to a practice culture that is professional and current. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you don’t need employment contracts. You will appreciate the employment contracts being in place when human resource matters and possible disputes arise. They help to protect you and your business. Compliance policies and procedures such as induction, OHS obligations, performance management and anti-discrimination are all provided as part of the staff management service. 

All contracts are approved by the RWS HR lawyer, Mr Michael Butler.

Induction and employment support documents

RWS provides induction for all new staff members. Our induction service includes the following: 

  • Offer of Employment detailing engagement terms 
  • Statement of Engagement – covering all legislative requirements for commencement 
  • An employment contract compliant with the National Employment Standards 
  • The formalised position description 
  • Creation of KPI’s for the role to create motivation and accountability 
  • Completed Personnel Details form 
  • Collation of superannuation and tax details 
  • Pay Instructions 
  • FairWork Australia compliancy 
  • Practice reporting/organisational structure outlined 
  • An induction template tailored to your rooms 
  • The induction meeting with the new staff member 
  • Latest WorkSafe guidelines presented
  • Candidate and client profiling to ensure a suitable fit for your practice

Policies and procedures for staff

RWS provides for your practice, all policies, and procedures relevant to attain compliance. Such policies include:

  • Personal/annual leave
  • Bullying and harassment
  • Anti-discrimination
  • Social media, email, and internet policies
  • Workplace attendance
  • Code of conduct
  • Termination
  • Disciplinary procedures
  • Privacy
  • Overtime/TOIL 
  • Personal mobile phone usage 
  • Grievance and complaints  
  • Alcohol and drug use 
  • Performance management  
  • Pregnancy at work  
  • Working from home  

If you have some policies and procedures already in place, we can review these to ensure they are up-to-date and tailored to meet the exact needs of your practice team. Workplace obligations are a changing space, and you are required to have current documentation. Also, as your staff change it is essential to ensure your HR documents are keeping pace – your practice is a dynamic entity.   

Robust, compliant, and bespoke policies and procedures protect your practice and ensure that if your staff leave you retain full control of your business processes. We can benchmark your practice against other doctors within your specialty area to ensure you are ticking all the right boxes.

RWS also offers a complete Practice Handbook for all areas of your business. 

Payroll and management of staff entitlements

RWS provides a payroll service to ensure your staff are paid correctly and on time.  It is not advised to allow your staff to pay themselves! We see many issues arising from this situation.   

The RWS finance team can ensure you are meeting entitlement obligations such as payslips, pay advice, sick leave, annual leave, and superannuation. 

Often when our clients are starting out in private practice, we will set-up payroll and entitlement systems and then continue to provide this as an ongoing service. This ensures the processes are set-up correctly from the onset to meet the needs of a industrial relations requirements of medical practice. 

At RWS we find your accountant does not always know the Health and Health Support Services Award or the nuances of a medical practice, so ensure your payroll is handled by a company who understand doctors and how a practice works.

Additional services

Additional training and development is offered for your team, such as:

  • A complete suite of training modules for staff and doctors 
  • A Social Responsibility Program to improve staff retention and satisfaction
  • A Practice Development Program to establish and cement staff skills in the areas of clinical practice management, professional service, and personal growth.