It might seem strange to put a dollar-value on a conversation, but it actually makes perfect sense. Why? Because patient experience in healthcare really impacts revenue growth.
First, ask yourself – are you treating each patient encounter as if it could positively or negatively affect your bottom-line? It’s not about prioritizing the financial gain…it’s about your commitment to creating a practice culture where patient experience is a top priority.
Why There’s Value in Putting a Price on the Patient Experience and Tracking Results
Every patient interaction has value (financial or otherwise). Consider the phases each patient moves through even before treatment occurs.
- An initial phone or online conversation
- A waiting room and/or front-desk interaction
- The hand-off to a clinical team member
- The interaction with you – the provider
- The transition from clinical to front-office
- Post-treatment or post-appointment follow-up
No interaction is too small or insignificant. Each has value to the patient experience.
”Organizations providing “superior” patient experience achieve net margins 50 percent higher than those providing “average” patient experience. This makes it vital for organizations to evaluate the entire continuum of the patient experience.” [1]
Loyalty leads to revenue growth. It follows that where patients feel valued, they will more likely invest their healthcare dollars.
How to Create a Patient Experience That Impacts Revenue Growth
Design Your Entire Culture Around the Patient Experience
What you monitor and measure can have a substantial impact on your revenue. Basically, it’s a cultural balance between available data and a patient.
It might seem a bit offbeat to analyze patient interactions, but it should become second nature. Doing so will help ensure that your culture reflects compassion, patient service, and overall transparency.
Think of being transparent as openness to what the data reveals. Share those discoveries with your team and seek patient input via surveys.
- Set performance benchmarks for maintaining and improving your patient experience
- Give your team the tools to sharpen their communication skills
- Implement standard-of-care best practices and routinely train your team around them
- Ask for feedback and pivot your service around the data
Be Open to Change and the Tools That Encourage It
Healthcare trends evolve. And your patient experience and related revenue growth depend on how well you stay current.
Patient needs can be discovered using available and new technology. It’s essential to think beyond the traditional care models and embrace the changing patient care relationship.
- Use online surveys to tap into patient opinion and thinking
- Analyze survey feedback and use the insights to immediately improve your patient experience
- Look for keywords and phrases within the feedback you receive on your social media channels, via email replies, on contact forms, in patient conversations during appointments and on phone calls
Online surveys get you immediate feedback allowing you to make positive changes quickly.
Listen Intuitively and Engage Your Patients Through Your Responses
Listening increases awareness of your patient’s healthcare goals and concerns. Engagement is the fundamental relationship you have with each patient that produces loyalty and referrals.
Positive (and even negative) reviews are a “gold-mine” of useful patient information. Keep in mind that a negative review holds truth that can help you reshape your future patient experience.
Stay aware of what your patients say online. Within their voiced concerns or critique of your services are the seeds for improvement that can impact your revenue cycle.
- Turn negative feedback into team assets for attracting and retaining patients
- Use patient review data to improve your communication strategies and daily operations
- Keep your team informed about patient feedback – the good and the bad – to help them pivot around the useful insights gained from it
Leverage Patient Feedback in Your Acquisition Strategies
Like consumers, patients are more likely to engage with you if you’re transparent about positive and negative feedback. Sharing only positive input can give the impression that you’re hiding something or not obtaining valid information.
Openly posting all information (positive and negative) builds your credibility. And the trust that results can help improve your patient experience and increase revenue.
Full disclosure…
- Says you welcome and value feedback
- Reveals you’re willing to improve your patient experience
- Helps increase your SEO ranking and drives more traffic to your website
It’s a Good Time to Improve Your Patient Experience and Increase Revenue
Stand-out from other service providers by investing in…
Your Patients
Valuing your patients and their families sets them up for a lifetime of positive health outcomes. The environment you set can help you achieve a better patient experience.
- Reduce patient anxiety and enhance their relaxation
- Prime patients and families for their appointments
- Create positive dental care experiences
Your Business
Maintain your edge in the crowded dental service space. Attention to details in your space can transform your environment and the overall patient experience.
- Create “buzz” in the community you serve
- Accelerate patient referrals
- Generate positive online reviews
Check out these related resources to upgrade or renew your patient experience:
What is Patient Experience and Why Does It Matter?
How to Get Online Reviews for Your Dental Office and Respond to Negative Ones
A Practical Guide to Creating an Exceptional Patient Experience
Contact Imagination Design Studios (IDS) to get started transforming your office from a mundane to magical patient experience.