I am a solo doc but I still have the same concerns. When I am on vacation, I have a competent staff member in the office to take calls, schedule appointments, direct patients where to go for care, etc. I have been reluctant to convert from Paperport (which receives all the faxes which can then be viewed by all the employees) to automated importing interfaces for the very reasons above.
My staff can review labs when I am gone and contact me directly by phone if there is an urgency. If they cannot get me, they can call any of several colleagues with whom I have made arrangements. They can weed out the normals. They can even do simple refills.
I generally check in via Logmein daily and handle the other time-sensitive stuff. That is unless I am hiking in the Tetons. I think as long as you make a legitimate attempt to have some system in place your behind is covered.
