The only way to persuade accountants to stop charging for work which they
don’t carry out is to find an accountant or firm that will support a
package which can produce printouts that satisfy both the Inland Rev and
the information needs of the practice. There are, I believe, 4-5
packages which are aimed at the vertical market made up of accountants but
are unsuitable for GPs or small businesses. Accountants have been faced
with the prospect of falling income once their clients start to computerise
UNLESS they start to charge for work they have not carried out. As long as
accountants use one package and the practice uses a different package
preferably suited to their needs I cannot see a way round this ‘over
billing’ as they say in the States.
If the accounting firm agrees to use the package adopted by the practice
or alternatively and preferably makes a recommendation which they support
you then get a total solution which can enable the practice to learn from
their mistakes and negotiate the fees downwards as their skills increase
simply by looking at the amendments made in the previous years accounts.
This could be described as ‘care shift’ which is just as difficult in the
accounting field as it is in the NHS although the vested interests may be
slightly different. After trying 3 accountants with dismal results have
at last found one who will provide the same quality of service that we
would expect to provide for our patients which means the costs come down as
our skills improve. Anyone else made the same breakthorugh??
Brian Higginson
Wellington Square Medical Centre
45 Wellington Square
Hastings TN34 1PN
Surgery Tel: 01424 722262
Email: [log in to unmask]
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