It’s a new year and we’re already 6 weeks in! Many of you have created new year resolutions, possibly for both personal and business. Yet as the year begins many medical practitioners finds themselves becoming overwhelmed in a repeat of projects and tasks to complete, deadlines to meet, and relationships to nurture. Such is the cycle every year. This year you can make a difference by culminating a set of tools that will make you more efficient, less “busy”, and more profitable. Our list below includes tools that will help you in various areas of the daily tasks you must do, as well as systems that will free your staff’s time.
Appointment Reminder System
The first tool on our list is a tool that many medical facilities desperately need but still aren’t using. An appointment reminder tool, such as AppointmentReminders.com, include text appointment reminders, various patient reminder systems, language translation settings, and more. You can increase your staff’s time by up to 20% per week when you use an appointment reminder system instead of making individual calls. Many people prefer text reminders which are even more efficient and can require your patient to confirm their appointment without the hassle of calling them. This is a major time-saving tool that has to be a part of your 2017 business plan!
Apps are the future
There are many mobile phone apps that are very useful for medical practitioners. You may not even know this because only 15% of health apps are marketed to doctors, according to Capterra. Some apps can replace large books needed to practice, such as the hefty BNF book. For example, the Nice eBNF app was created specifically to replace carrying around the BNF book to every ward. The eBNF provides a one-stop shop for doctors, giving them access to practical information on prescribing, dispensing, and administering medicines. The best part about this app is you don’t even have to have internet to use it.
Social Media and Public Relations
Public Relations is the bread and butter of the medical field. Nothing can replace a real face-to-face conversation between a doctor and a patient. These authentic conversations are the ones that will determine who your patients will be and, essentially, the success of your practice. Social Media is the perfect tool for doing just that. Many companies are finding very successful ways to offer customer service instantly to customers through conversations on social media. Many cell phone companies have adopted this practice and have proven the effectiveness of instant communication afforded through social media. Social media is the new PR and if you haven’t already starting using it then you are falling behind.
Effective Staff Training
There are many, many tools available to help with staff training. Whether your staff needs to be trained on technology, processes, or people, it’s all there. Yet, many medical practices are not taking advantage of the fantastic programs available to them. Studies show that patients will end their relationship with their doctor if they do not also have a cordial relationship with the staff. And you can understand why – considering you might interact with your patient for ten minutes but your staff will interact with them much more. From the moment your patient steps into your practice you want them to feel welcomed, informed, comfortable. Your staff will determine that through their communication, efficiency, and bedside manners. If your staff lacks proper training due to time, programs, or money then you desperately need to consider a training tool.
Make this year count. Don’t waste any more time falling back into the same routines that you’ve been meaning to improve for months (or even years) now. Start with this checklist and keep moving forward until your practice is exactly what you want it to be. We’ll be here for you and happy to help you any we can using our AppointmentReminders system!
