Bringing all the pieces together for a successful vein practice. · 2017-10-30 · Based upon our 2015 & 2016 case study, 27% of new patient calls ended without the patient scheduling

Bringing all the pieces together

for a successfulvein practice.

WHAT IS APATIENT’SFIRSTIMPRESSIONOF YOURPRACTICE?With increased competitionamongst vein practices,providing excellent customerservice is paramount not onlyto your practice success butpractice survival. Recording andmonitoring calls is the best wayto train and coach staff on howto handle new patient inquiriesand established patient callseffectively!

How much revenue is your practice losingdue to staff difficulties converting patientinquiries into consultation appointments?

Based upon our 2015 & 2016 case study, 27% of new patientcalls ended without the patient scheduling a consultation. Ifreimbursement for a typical consultation is $550, just one lostconsultation per day could cost you $143,000 a year. With anaverage patient reimbursement of $2,650 per treatment cycle,that number exceeds $689,000.

Marketing’s job is to make the phone ring…The rest is up to you!

Implement today! Call (855) MD ADVISOR or visit www.VeinBusiness.com

Monitor TelephoneInquiry toConsultationConversion Rates

Your website may initially attractpatients to your practice, but whathappens when a potential newpatient picks up the phone andcalls for an appointment? This isnot an interaction to leave up tochance; instead, train your staff tohandle all patient inquiries withthe same level of professionalismand warmth that you do for yourclinical staff.

Equally important is teaching yourstaff to ask the right questions toguide prospective patients to theprocedures they might be mostinterested in. At the same time,collecting the correct patientinformation is essential to allowfor patient follow-up at a laterdate. Finally, you want your staffto know how to schedule theconsultation and get off thephone, leaving the clinicalquestions for the doctor duringthe consultation.

Most practices would love todefinitively say they are highlyskilled at turning first-timetelephone inquiries into new

that elusive initial consultation. It isessential that practices know iftheir staff is being properly trainedin conversion techniques andcomponents and is effectivelyexecuting that training “live” onthe phone.

What are YourPriorities?

If you want your staff to makepatient conversion a priority, youneed to convey that importance toyour employees on a regular basis.Ongoing training and support fromVein Specialists of America showsyour staff that you value patientconversion and that you are willingto provide your staff with theeducation and support needed toachieve your desired results!

patient consultations. Howsatisfying would it be for yourpractice to confidently say itconverts 70%, 80% or better ofpatient inquiries into revenueproducing patients? While somepractices obviously are better thanothers at getting potential patientsto commit to a consultation overthe telephone, even the best ofthe best would probably admit toletting far too many telephoneinquiries slip away.

Practices that convert a highpercentage of initial patientinquiries into consultations likelyinvest a significant amount of timeand resources into properlytraining staff to master thecomponents required to identifyand meet the needs of first-timecallers and get them to request

Implement today! Call (855) MD ADVISOR or visit www.VeinBusiness.com

“This Call May Be Recorded For Quality Assurance…”

Pretty much every call to a customer service help desk starts with this greeting. Areinbound marketing calls into your practice being recorded? Are you monitoring andcoaching staff to increase conversion rates from patient inquiries into consultations?

"We’re getting more newpatient consultationsbecause fewer patientsare falling through thecracks. Not only do wenow know where ourproblems are, we arelearning how to correctthem."

In addition to training, your staffwill need the time to provide thekind of assistance prospectivepatients are looking for. If thesame staff member that handlesnew patient inquiries … setsappointments … answers patientquestions at checkout … andhandles established patients thatcome into your office, you are notdoing that staff member or thepatients that visit your practicejustice. Give patient inquiries thetime and attention they deserve.

Locate and CorrectListening Gaps

Many times receptionists andappointment schedulers think theyare great listeners, although areview of recorded calls may proveotherwise! Active listening is oneof the most important skills forappointment schedulers to master,and patients are typically adept atknowing when a staff member isproceeding with his or her ownpreconceived agenda rather thanremaining intently engaged in theconversation. It can be hard toteach the fundamentals of activelistening without real-worldexamples to fall back on … so arecording demonstrating whereyour staff are lacking in this regardis extremely beneficial.

Build a Foundation fora Solid Trainingprogram

You can internally develop a libraryof real-world experiences that youcan use to demonstrate both thebest and worst ways to handle

patient interactions. These callswill provide staff with relevantinformation about your practice,vein disease and treatmentoptions, so they can immediatelyget a sense of the commonhurdles they face when speakingwith patients.

Inbound call recordings make forgreat instructional tools for newhires. But they also provide arefresher course for establishedemployees to gain new insightswell after their initial training hasbeen completed.

Summary

Having a strategy to handleinbound marketing calls andproviding your staff with theappropriate level of training andsupport, you can dramaticallyincrease your inquiry toconsultation conversion rates andyour practice’s profitability. Withno plan in place, you are leavingtoo much to chance and throwingprecious dollars down the drain!

Implement today! Call (855) MD ADVISOR or visit www.VeinBusiness.com

Winning Call Components

✔ Create a positive firstimpression with thepatient

✔ Establish rapport with thepatient

✔ Engage the patient

✔ Offer a value proposition(credentials, outcomes,patient satisfaction, etc.)

✔ Educate (vein disease /treatment options)

✔ Schedule the Consultationand conclude the call

What Is CallRecording andCall Monitoring?

Call Recording. The #1 goalof call recording should betalent development. New hireslisten to calls so they have avery clear understanding ofexpectations. Training includeslistening to examples ofoutstanding customer service,as well as those that providesome room for improvement.Recorded calls can be useful ifyou need to listen back to orreview a call. By incorporatingpre-recorded patient calls intonew hire training, you canprovide them with clear andconcise examples of “what”and “what not” to do,allowing for more knowledgeretention through efficienthands-on application.

Call Monitoring. Callmonitoring offers the ability tolisten to incoming phone calls.This feature providesreassurance for doctors andoffice managers that supportstaff can ably handle incomingcallers. This is especiallyeffective for monitoringemployee performance andpatient satisfaction levels.

Vein Specialists of America, Ltd. 900 Oakmont Lane, Suite 400 Westmont, IL 60559www.VeinBusiness.com(855) MD ADVISOR (630) 455-4528

Vein Specialists of America is a phlebology-specific practice management, marketing and revenue cycle management advisory and consulting firm. We focus on implementation management and results-oriented consulting, which enables us to help our clients realize the true strategic and operationalpotential of the medical practices they own and operate.

With a team effort offering business intelligence and 100s of years of experience, our clientshave experienced increased revenues, decreased expenses, and greater profitability without thedaily concerns of office operations management. We look forward to doing the same for you!

“In any successful consulting relationship, there are threesynchronous elements that must be delivered: experience,integrity and a commitment to achieving measurable results.A noticeable deficit in any one of these elements will compromisethe overall outcome of an engagement and the prospects for along – term business relationship.”

David P. SchmiegePresident & CEOVein Specialists of America

About VSA

505Client EngagementsSince 2002

$15Ave. Client ROI Per $1Since 2002

98%Client SatisfactionSince 2002

138Practice Start UpsSince 2002