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Tips For New Physicians - Junk Mail

Yes, you read it right, I want to talk about junk mail.  Junk mail is a topic worthy of discussion because physician’s offices receive so much of it.   The time that it takes you and/or your staff to sift through the junk mail actually costs you money. 

For example, if a front office staff member spends 15 min per day at $10/hr or $2.50 per day x 5 days/week x 52 weeks (junk mail comes year-round) you’ll spend $650 + taxes or approx $750 on having your mail sorted and opened. 

If you spend 15 min per day sorting mail at $300/hr or $50 per day x 5 days x 52 weeks, you’ll lose out on $13,000 of gross income per year.  That’s a chunk-o-change.  So, here are a few suggestions:

1. Use your work address for everything related to doctoring.  People who send out junk mail are trying to make a profit, so they LOVE to send it to people with money - i.e. you.  Every government office, every medical organization, every store you shop at is going to sell your soul address to some marketing firm and BOOM, your mailbox will explode with junk mail.  If you can limit the amount that gets sent to your house, you can avoid having to spend your time (after hours) sorting and shredding junk mail.

Shred every piece of mail that has your home address and references the fact that you’re a doctor or MD.  That includes pre-populated credit card offers, magazine prescription offers, e.t.c.  Someone will dig through your trash and try to steal your identity at some point during your career - don’t help them.

2.  Designate one person in your office to sort your mail and recycle junk mail.  Give that person a list of journals that you’d like to keep.  Don’t sort mail yourself - you can’t afford to use yourself as the mail sorter.

3.  If you’re so inclined, reply to junk mail from professional organizations and ask them to remove your address from their mailing lists.  Better yet, have your office staff write those letters for you.