We had interns before. Selective hiring process to much a disruption to a small clinic workflow. We let them shadow our MAs, then work on our AC, many of them made lots of mistakes, like you can not drive doesn't matter how much you watch.
Our MAs became full time trainers. With larger practice, you can spare one MA. After so many interns later we got so reluctance to get them in. Many MA schools still base their teaching on paper charts.
Another example of 'our' modern referral process. We use one centralized Excel program to coordinate referrals. One patient might have multiple referrals. Each time a referral done then we date it in Excel. Older patient family members calls 'multiple' times complaints about their relatives not being accepted because docs have not received paperworks from PCP. A quick glance at our Excel, MA can tell right away if referral paper has been done and 'received'. Many times, we faxed it over and other office kept saying not receiving it.
Another sensitive issue in EMR world, those who are not going for higher degrees tend to have lower tech attitude to work in higher tech environment. We have couple of ready for IV league students, they were fantastic, very quick to learn.
Like Bert telling me to get an Ipad to have better fun with techno but seems younger people good with text/game/twitt...but not tech working environmment. Computers not yet forgiving per human sloppiness or stupidity. They force us to live in this nightmarish world, then they need to pay double so we can hire more peoples to do work of one.
