One of the myriad items that differentiate practices with high patient retention rates is how physicians interact with patients between office visits. Doctors can & do take technologies to such extremes that they de-personalize the patient.<\/p>\n
For example, do you send birthday cards to patients to help you \u201ckeep in touch?\u201d Great! Do you place computer generated mailing labels on the envelopes? Uh Oh! And finally, is the entire birthday card\u00a0computer generated, or does it have a pre-printed label you created inside the card? If so, you\u2019re sending your patients the wrong message.<\/p>\n
Generate a list of birthdays weekly or monthly from ECLIPSE and assign a staff member with good handwriting skills to address the cards & envelopes by hand<\/em>. Either sign them yourself or have your staff member do it. You\u2019ve managed to both utilize technology and brighten a patient\u2019s day. After 25 years in practice I can assure you that odds are high your patient will both remember and appreciate the gesture… and may be more likely to refer friends.<\/p>\n If that’s beyond your capabilities, consider using a service to\u00a0mail\/email personalized cards. However, I’ve always preferred the method above and believe that — even amongst a generation that does everything online — patients will appreciate that you went the extra mile.<\/p>\n Next, text messages\u00a0can be a great way to remind a patient that she missed her appointment\u00a030 minutes ago. But, a day or two later, you need to consider the possibility that she may be indifferent \u2014 as opposed to forgetful. In order to avoid losing the patient, a personal call by a doctor or trusted staff member allows for the possibility of intervention to explain why care should be continued, or explore other issues. (The patient may not feel she’s improving,\u00a0may have concerns about the cost of care, etc.) Though this may\u00a0take the longest…\u00a0it’s also most likely to provide the best returns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of the myriad items that differentiate practices with high patient retention rates is how physicians interact with patients between office visits. Doctors can & do take technologies to such extremes that they de-personalize the patient. For example, do you … Continue reading