In the medical-social sector, expense claims mainly concern staff members who incur expenses in the course of their work. Whether they are social workers, nurses, specialized educators or even administrators, these professional expenses generally include travel expenses or the purchase of small items essential to their work. However, for these expenses to be reimbursed, they must be approved by the facility's management. Policies on expense claims may vary from one medical-social center to another, so it's crucial for employees to refer to internal guidelines to find out what procedure to follow.
Expense management in medical and social care establishments can be complex, due to the diversity of services offered and the types of expenses incurred. Here we look at seven best practices for simplifying and optimizing this process.
Draw up a clear expense policy
For effective expense management, it's essential to define a clear policy. This involves specifying the types of expenses eligible for reimbursement, the reimbursement ceilings, the steps to follow when submitting a claim, and the supporting documents required. With a well-defined policy in place, you ensure financial transparency and consistency in the business expense reimbursement process.
Train your staff in the procedures to follow
As a facility manager, make sure that the staff concerned are fully trained in expense claim procedures. Organize an information meeting and circulate an explanatory memo, which you can also make available online.
Implement an efficient expense management system
The management system you choose should offer a user-friendly interface enabling employees to submit claims easily, and managers to approve and process them quickly. It can include features such as a pre-filled claim form, receipt templates, as well as reporting and analysis tools to track expenses closely and make informed budget decisions.
Many of the expense management systems available on online accounts, such as Anytime, also offer integration with other software used by healthcare organizations, such as accounting software. What's more, they are designed to ensure compliance with tax regulations.
Use business credit cards
To simplify expense management and eliminate individual reimbursements, an effective solution is to provide each of your employees with a business credit card. This card enables your employees to make business expenses without advancing money or waiting for reimbursement.
Cards can be set to limit the amount of spending per employee, reducing the risk of financial fraud or misuse of funds.
By opting to distribute business credit cards instead of reimbursing expense claims after the fact, you save time, reduce processing errors and exercise tighter control over the types of purchases authorized.
Implement internal controls
It is often necessary to set up internal controls to verify expenses incurred, ensuring that they comply with the limits and procedures defined by your medical-social center. These checks also ensure the validity of the supporting documents provided, in particular by comparing receipts with claims.
Internal audits can also play a crucial role in adjusting your expense reimbursement policy if necessary. By regularly monitoring your expenses, you can identify potential problems and make improvements to the process accordingly.
Dematerialize expense receipts
By adopting mobile applications or scanning tools, you reduce the risk of losing receipts and simplify the electronic storage and management of your documents.
The transition to paperless expense receipts offers many advantages, both for your employees and for your medical center.
Time-saving and efficient
Receipts no longer need to be physically stored and submitted manually. They can simply be scanned or photographed for electronic recording.
Reduce your costs and your footprint
By moving away from paper, dematerialization reduces printing and storage costs, while freeing up workspace space.
Easy access and search
Digital files are easy to organize, store and search. Employees and managers can quickly access the information they need.
Security and storage of your data
Digital receipts are securely stored in computer systems, considerably reducing the risk of loss or theft. What's more, dematerialization offers the possibility of using encryption methods to protect sensitive information, thus reinforcing data security.
Compliance and traceability
Digital transactions are easily traceable, and regulatory compliance is automatically assured.
Respect repayment deadlines
Claims must be processed within an agreed timeframe to ensure a smooth cash flow and avoid staff dissatisfaction.
By adopting best practices, medical-social establishments can improve the efficiency and transparency of their expense management process, while ensuring compliance with current policies and regulations.