Time Management in Clinical Practice

Abstract

Organizing one's time to accomplish the tasks that bombard an occupational therapist each day is imperative to personal and professional survival. Clinicians have more and greater responsibility than ever before, but are not able to quantitatively increase the number of clock hours to handle the increased workload. The answer lies in managing one's allocated time more effectively. Clinicians tend to fall into the same "time traps" as everyone else. They can waste time by not concentrating on one task at a time, or through procrastination. It is not unusual for a clinician to attempt to see as many patients as possible without a clear system of priority setting. This article outlines ways of applying time management principles to the unique demands of clinical practice. Specific methods of increasing a clinician's time management skills are presented through the Clinical Time Log, the System of Clinical Prioritization, applications of Pareto's Rule, and specific suggestions for better time management in clinical practice.