How to Get New Patients That Commit

I have had several clients who had more physician referrals than the number of patients they were receiving. Would you agree that something is wrong with this picture?

They gave me numerous reasons and most seemed to have no remedy, much to their dismay. The good news is that there is something that can be done about it.

The keynote is communication. Now look at this from the viewpoint of a patient:  you are in pain or have run into some unwanted condition, you are worried you will probably miss some work and/or income, you are facing some unexpected expenses, and if only this pain would let you think straight. So, when you call the place you have been referred to, that supposedly will get rid of the pain (you are skeptical about this, by the way), you will have no patience with so much as the person answering the phone.

So the good communication starts at the front desk. A friendly, interested attitude will go a long way to ease some of the troubles you are going through. Even though you only wanted to find out approximately how much this was going to cost, someone there asked a few good questions, acknowledged the fact that things looked grim for you and got you to commit to see the therapist.

When you arrived at the place (not without a lot of logistic arrangements), the front desk person received you with a smile, offered you some water and again, listened to what you had to say and even acknowledged it.

Without a very long wait, the therapist saw you, and again listened and acknowledged your woes! “Are these people trained that way?” you thought. Then, with certainty and visible care, the therapist explained what needed to happen, told you how long it would take and gave you some realistic idea of the estimation of effort.

Now, after that, would you be ready to commit or would you want to continue shopping? Compare that patient’s experience to the experience most patients have at your practice and that will give you something to do to get patients that commit.