Now that the festive period is over it is time to get back on track.

Practice managers around the UK are not only wishing for the New Year to bring ‘joy and prosperity’. They are already brainstorming on how to improve both their own and their practice’s life.

Love my job

It is always hard to go back to routine after a long Christmas break, especially if what waits around the corner is an endless list of unfinished tasks.

Practice manager at The Colte Partnership – Mersea Island Branch in EssexPaul Conroy believes that there is a way to ‘fall in love with the job again’. Here is his piece of advice for you.

‘As practices, we can’t carry on thinking as we always have – we have to see with new eyes, and think differently.

‘For me the biggest thing next year is to think differently. To see beyond the spin and the shouting of various commissioners or providers and see what is really going on in the UK healthcare market.’

Love my body 

Of course, this is a bit of a cliché, especially for those working with the healthcare system. However, how many of us do actually hit the gym?

Practice manager at the Alvanley Family Practice in Stockport Kay Keane’s resolution to become healthier in 2018 is to ‘walk to work at least 3 days a week’.

If you don’t live at a short walking distance from your practice, there is plenty of exercise you can do at your practice if you can’t be bothered hitting the gym. For instance, you could avoid using lifts, reduce idle times at your desk or consider getting a standing desk.

Make my practice great again

Who says grand ambitions are for politicians only? There are always plenty of ways through which you can improve your practice.

Practice business manager at Darwen Health Centre in Darwen Ann Neville, who was awarded two prices as ‘best practice manager’ in 2017 has shown great expectations for the year to come.

Among her resolutions, Ms Neville hopes: ‘to continue to promote the achievements that the practice has made over the past couple of years and build on what has already been achieved’, to ‘develop others within the practice and help them to achieve their full potential’, and to ‘develop the work around the Homelessness Project’.

Ms Keane also has some ideas that will help her improve her patients’ experience. Among these, she will ‘build on the practice health champions model’ and ‘develop active signposting to ensure that the community continues to grow in resilience’.

Save energy

Let’s not forget to rest. You want to use your energy for things that truly matter.

‘You don’t have to win every battle in order to win the war; the challenge is in choosing the right battles’ thinks practice business manager at Chapel Street Medical Centre in Ashton-under-Lyne Tracey Williamson. For this reason, she will be ‘wasting no energy’ on things she can’t influence and ‘only listen to things which are of value’.

With all this thinking going on, support from your colleagues is what you need this year.

As Mr Conroy put it as one of his resolutions: ‘Employ people who are better than me at things so I can concentrate on doing the hardest thing – thinking.’

Continue to develop on a personal level

It is incredibly true that we are never done learning. New directives, changes in contracts, recruitment and IT-related issues are only some of the brain teasers you will have to get on with this year, as you had to in the past.

Why not starting one step ahead? There are plenty of additional skills you can acquire through diplomas, for instance.

For instance, one of Ms Neville’s resolutions for 2018 is to complete the Diploma for Advanced Primary Care Management at Scale.

‘It’s rather challenging especially as I work full time. However, it is proving to be a great learning experience.’