The top and most successful functional medicine practices all have a few common factors that are important to succeed. A balance between business goals and objectives and the desire to provide outstanding care for your patients should be the primary goal of your practice. Some offices have found that telemedicine can play an important role in the elements for success.
One of your goals is to help people lead a healthier and more enjoyable life as a provider. To obtain this goal, it is essential to focus on quality patient care and your bottom line. Your functional medicine practice is a business, and your revenue growth and cost control should be on the top of your mind.
The most limited resource in your office is your time. There are only so many billable hours in the day. So you must maximize that amount of time. Your profitability can be eaten up by unpaid telephone, important follow-up calls, patients with no shows, and downtime between patient visits.
This is a big reason some providers turn to telemedicine appointments. They can replace in-person appointments, and in many cases, follow-up visits via a video chat are billable while a phone call is not. Your no show and cancellations are decreased because the patient can attend the visit without physically having to travel, and your time and the provider’s time is spent more efficiently.
The importance of your front office staff can not be overstated. Interactions with the front desk, the medical assistants, and other members in your office shape the customer experience as much as your provider interaction does. An office that is stressed, short-staffed, and unhappy can deliver poor customer service.
Try to make sure you have plenty of front office staff and team members to keep the wait time in the waiting room down or make telemedicine appointments to make sure those run smoothly and are always performed on time. Your patients want a positive customer experience when they visit your office, and you must make sure they are getting it. Keep your front office trained correctly, adequately staffed, and happy to help your functional medicine office.
Patients often refer other patients to functional medicine and healthcare providers; patients have various doctors they can see and often shop around for the best service and costs.
Make your functional health care office stand out by providing excellent customer service and developing deeper relationships with patients. Practices that allow patients to use their office for many needs are among the best in keeping customers happy. In other words, patients like a doctor who can handle more than just one specialty and conditions they may have. If your practice is set up to do this, you could increase your patient loyalty and satisfaction.
No matter how well your customer interaction and loyalty are, this is a wasted effort if you are not reimbursed for each visit. Some functional medicine providers offer a pay-per-month plan; others offer payment plans, bill insurance, and pay-as-you-go plans. Whatever the options your office chooses to use, make sure they are working for you and offering you a return on your invested time.
When it comes to your functional medicine office, there are several things you can do to ensure your office will succeed. Spend your time wisely, keep your customers satisfied and engaged, and ensure you are being reimbursed for your time. These tips should have you well on the way to running a successful office and building up your client base.
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