Welcome to the weekend folks! We here at Postcall have decided to aggregate the chillest sections of Postcall and move them to the weekend - when you’re chill too.

Time for some stories! (4 minute read)

1. “Guess what I saw today”

2. Delegation tips to help you save lives (but mostly time)

3. How a private surgery group doubled their throughput

4. A guide to marginal taxes

5. Postcall Crossword

“Guess what I saw today” 

Not something they saw, but we approve nonetheless:

Have a riveting tale of your own? Send us your best “guess what I saw today” from the OR, ED, or clinic (anonymized, obviously).

Save Lives, Not Files! 

Helpful Tip Part One - Mastering the Art of Delegation as an Individual

Effectively managing time remains a persistent challenge across various stages of medical training, especially for newly practicing doctors. Dr. Eric Cadesky (GP) states, “[Delegation] is often something that doctors struggle with, as it’s not taught in medical school…”

To help fill this education gap, we’ve rounded up a few helpful tips that we will share over the course of a three-part series. 

For part one, we will be focusing on the importance of outsourcing and delegating tasks on an INDIVIDUAL level to provide greater mental freedom and ensure tasks are executed more efficiently and with greater expertise. 

This week’s tips:

• Time Blocking: Break your daily schedule into “blocks” of 2-3 hours that are assigned to specific tasks. Make sure to stay focused during these blocks as no other task, other than the one assigned, should be completed during this time.

• Eisenhower Matrix: Sort your daily tasks into four categories based upon their level or urgency and importance (Do It Now, Schedule It, Delegate It, or Delete It). 

• 3-3-3 Rule: Use the following rules everyday. Dedicate three hours to your most important project of the day with defined progress goals. Dedicate time to complete three shorter/urgent tasks that you have been avoiding (e.g., emails, calls). Dedicate time to complete three “maintenance activities” that are essential for daily functioning (e.g., organizing your work desk).

So in a world where time management is the ultimate skill, delegate like a time-saving hero, and soon you'll be known for healing ailments, not wrestling with admin chaos!

Part Two: Mastering the Art of Delegation as a Multidisciplinary Team Member… coming next Saturday!

Speed Reads 🚤 

1: 🍊 You may have heard that Donald Trump may be missing from the ballots for the GOP primaries in Colorado, Maine, and Illinois for violating the “insurrectionist clause” in the 14th Amendment. Well, on Monday the Supreme Court unanimously overturned those decisions, allowing him back into the race. Just in time to take Super Tuesday and push Nikki Haley to suspend her campaign.

2: 🪡 Academic Orthopedic Surgical Associates of Ottawa (AOAO), a private surgeons group, will be doubling the number of surgeries at the Ottawa Hospital’s Riverside campus. Advocates say using vacant operating rooms on the weekends will reduce wait times. Critics are skeptical of the ever-increasing number of for-profit players in health care.

3: ⏰ It’s that time of the year again — get ready for your clocks to jump forward an hour this Sunday morning (basically tonight) as we return to Daylight Savings Time.

4: 🏆️ If getting one hour less sleep has you down… don’t cry just yet. You might see Oppenheimer sweep the prizes at the Oscars. The awards show airs at 7PM ET Sunday (tomorrow).

Postcall’s Declassified Marginal Tax Survival Guide 💸

We sometimes hear from those new to practice (or even residents getting that sweet sweet cash for the first time) that taxes are confusing. Specifically: “could I end up with less money if I earn more money?“

Not to worry, let’s get some basics out here:

1. What’s a marginal tax rate?: Your marginal tax rate is the tax rate you pay on your last dollar of income. The more money you earn, the more tax you pay on the next dollar. But you will never lose money by earning more money.

2. How does tax collection work?: Canada uses two tax systems - federal and provincial/territorial. Your total tax depends on income, location, and combined marginal tax rate. As for federal taxes, no matter where you live, it applies uniformly. 

3. Trying to send your documents to your accountant? You should be able to find your T4s and receipts in your provincial association member portals.

Federal Tax Brackets (2023):

• Up to $53,359: 15%

• $53,359-$106,717: 20.5%

• $106,717-$165,430: 26%

• $165,430-$235,675: 29%

• Above $235,675: 33%

3. What are Provincial and Territorial Tax Brackets?: They vary, check the CRA for details. 

4. Bottom line:

🕹️ Game ⛳️

Show us what you got!

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