Accounting for Your Practice

Accounting is more than reconciling numbers and writing cheques – successful financial practices rely on developing office systems that work for your practice. The best time to do this is one month after you open your clinic doors. Your patient numbers might be low at this time which you should provide you with a terrific opportunity to start creating an effective accounting system.

Much like marketing and advertising, accounting tasks must be performed on a scheduled basis in order for it to be effective. Some NDs pay their bills on the first day of the month and perform bank runs on the fifteenth. Will this schedule work in your practice? Customize your practice’s payment schedule – what works for one ND might not apply for you.

There may be some trial and error in the beginning as you adapt to the business, but configuring the schedule early on will help you immensely as your practice becomes established and you have more patients (and therefore, far less time). An important tip is to write your schedule down and post it somewhere that you see often – this will remind you and ensure you don’t fall behind on paying off your water bill or depositing cheques at the bank. Seek help from your accountant when you need to, but always be involved in the management of your finances.

Three months after opening

Set up a system set up for GST/PST and employee tax deduction remittances, especially if you have an employee. Your bookkeeper should handle this but make sure you understand how these payments are made, as the penalties for late or non payment are very severe.

Six months after opening

Review your spending and revenue
Prepare and file income tax and GST/PST returns on time. Keep business related receipts and enter them into a tracking system. Remember “all expenses incurred to earn an income” are tax deductible. Record all revenues and expenses carefully and save receipts. This will make things easier when you have to pay your taxes, usually by April 30, following the December 31 year end.