17 July 2010
Posted in
Pearls in Ophthalmology
By Edward H. Hu, MD
1. Be nice
Each patient you see starting out has one of two options based on their initial experience, seeing you again or seeing your competitor. You need patient retention and that is best done with comprehensive compassionate care.
2. Be accessible
Starting out, you have to be available and take every opportunity to gain patient base. Find opportunities to capitalize on times not covered by your partners (early morning/later evening/weekend). Never refuse to cover call by your partners or competitors, on-call patients can be your most loyal patients as you have helped them in their time of most need.
3. Be a communicator
Building a practice requires excellent lines of communication with everyone: your future partners, staff, patients and fellow medical colleagues. Every prompt referral letter that you send out is a free advertisement of your skill. Every patient that returns to their referring doctor praising your care increases the future possibility that they will continue to refer to you. Take the time (and you will have the time) to explain to patients their conditions so that they understand them. You will be surprised at how many will say, "No other doctor has taken the time to explain that to me".
4. Be patient
You won't get everything you want immediately (patient/surgery volume, equipment etc.). Rome was not built in a day. Your future partners have sacrificed more than you can ever imagine to get to this point in their careers. You must prove your value to your future partner(s) and then your requests/desires will become an obvious necessity and not perceived as an impetuous demand.
5. Be involved
You need to know how everything works whether you like it or not. If you don't have a technician initially, you will need to know how to run all the diagnostic equipment. You cannot be above learning billing and coding well, or you will be doing things and not getting paid for them and dependent upon others for your livelihood. As a leader/owner, you must be able to do the job of everyone else and better.
