1. Explore secondary markets. While maintaining a good presence within your primary market is important, practices in smaller regions may find it difficult to expand within their current areas. Michael Cox, PhD, CEO of Central Maine Orthopedics (CMO) in Auburn, Maine, suggests looking to nearby areas where you can market your services. “The Lewiston/Auburn area, where our practice is located, doesn’t have any big cities, but it is a business hub. We have a significant presence in our community and have invested the time and personnel in reaching out to surrounding areas,” Dr. Cox says. CMO began by working with critical care hospitals in their secondary markets by providing orthopedic services on-site in the hospitals’ specialty clinics expanding CMO’s market reach.
2. Step up marketing that can target referring physicians and patients. Physicians and staff with fewer patients can now devote more time to marketing efforts that can win more patients in the long run and even the short term:
- A newsletter for patients. Doctors write the articles for this new offering and employees format, print, fold, staple and mail it, at significantly lower costs than local printers
- Physicians’ presentations at local hospitals. Since last fall, doctors from the practice have been speaking to lay audiences on cutting-edge procedures such as artificial discs and minimally invasive surgery. About 50-60 people show up at this hospital-organized event and the practice gets around 15 referrals from it
- Marketing visits to referring physicians. In groups of three, employees visit doctors in several medical office complexes, handing out brochures and doctors’ bio cards
- An open house for referring physicians. Recently expanded to two events a year, its only cost is catering and liquor for about 120 attendees. Representatives from device makers demonstrate models of their products for free. Staff set up and tear down furnishings and do most of the serving, which gives them an opportunity to discuss the practice.
3. Hire an athletic trainer for the practice. Having an athletic trainer available at the practice is important to ensure the patient is seeking full treatment and services from the practice, says Angie Van Utrecht, director of operations at Orthopedic Specialists in Davenport, Iowa. In addition to working in an athletic training facility, athletic trainers have a background in musculoskeletal treatment and are able to perform many functions at the practice, including patient instruction for rehabilitation techniques and durable medical equipment fitting, says Ms. Utrecht. Practices that have partnerships with local schools can also send the athletic trainer to team practices and games. The trainer should be available to immediately assess an athlete’s injury and function as a liaison between the athlete, parents, coaches and the practice if further treatment is necessary.
4. Commit to a customer service mentality. In an ultra-competitive environment where hospitals are luring orthopedic surgeons away from independent practice and drawing in patients through primary care networks, independent practices like OrthoCarolina have to work hard to differentiate themselves. “For us to provide a meaningful alternative over time, we have to create a patient experience that is far beyond what they can get at a hospital-based physician practice,” says OrthoCarolina CEO Daniel B. Murrey, MD, MPP. “Patients can’t always tell the difference, frankly, in how good the clinical quality is. They only have their experience. They can judge service quality much better than clinical quality.”
At OrthoCarolina, staff and physicians are trained in customer service, he says. The practice relies on patient satisfaction surveys, the data from which is distributed weekly to physicians and staff. “We’re also trying to develop things that aren’t available in other places, things that anticipate the needs of patients and their families,” Dr. Murrey adds. Whether it’s providing up front financial information about a procedure or helping patients figure out how much time they might need to take off from work for recovery, these extra efforts have an impact on the patient experience, he says.
5. Build satellite locations for easier patient access. If a large portion of the patients at the practice are traveling long distances or from another state to receive care, the practice should consider constructing another location to accommodate those patients, says Faris Ghani, COO of the Center for Advanced Spine Technologies in Cincinnati. While patients will travel across the state and into new states for treatment, it becomes difficult for them to return for check-ups and receive additional guidance from the practice surgeons and staff. Building a new location closer to that group of patients makes it more convenient for the patients to make several trips to the practice for check-ups, surgery and rehabilitation.
