Eyeworld

July 2017 • Ophthalmology Business 23 they've had a positive experience. Their perception of the practice, staff, and doctors is enhanced, which increases the likelihood that they will refer their friends and family for care. Keep patients coming back With the proliferation of online physician rating sites, patients have become the ultimate consumers of medicine, always in search of the best physician or specialist who offers the most cutting-edge technology with the best in-office experience. Unsur- prisingly, one recent study revealed that 72% of healthcare professionals think that health apps will encourage patients to take more responsibility for their health. In order for our practice to help encourage that responsibility, and ultimately enhance that connection with the patient, we use PRM tools that integrate with our EHR to deliver timely, relevant information through devices they use every day. We also use PRM tools to mon- itor social media and track patient satisfaction ratings through surveys. We save time and resources by elimi- nating the need to print out surveys, mail them to patients, and incur the cost of paper, ink, envelopes, postage, and staff time. Our practice now uses the saved time and resources to bet- ter connect with patients and focus on giving them the best experience possible, both in and out of the exam room. It is our goal to provide an excellent experience for the patient every time, but if we fall short, we want to know about it. Social media reviews offer us the opportunity to connect with our patients in ways we may not have had the chance to do in the past. Half the battle of keeping patients happy is knowing when we fall short of an expectation. For each patient who expresses displeasure, there is an average of 26 others who do not say anything at all. Feedback is a gift, and the patients who care enough to let you know when you fall short of their expectations are those that can become some of your biggest advocates. In our experience, acknowledging that feedback and correcting what we can often makes a patient even more loyal to the practice. Communication between both parties is key to great outcomes and a great patient experience. Utilizing technology that is available to us al- lows us to reach and educate our pa- tients in ways we couldn't previously, allowing us to continually strive to exceed patient expectations. OB customized means, ensuring we're meeting each guest's personal vision goals and needs. Technology is one way that helps bridge this expectation gap by help- ing us communicate with patients in the way that best suits them. For example, we're able to email an edu- cational video to one patient, while handing out a brochure to another. We can text or email appointment reminders, as well as call the patient. We can show LASIK patients exactly how the laser will sculpt their cornea through a video or we can show cat- aract patients what their vision may be like after cataract surgery based on the type of lens they choose through an app. The plethora of communica- tion options that technology allows us to have at our fingertips helps us meet patients exactly where they are and educate in the best way that suits them. Technology has also helped us lower our overhead costs. Patient no- shows are one of the biggest sources of financial loss a practice can face, and implementing a physical call reminder system allowed us to lower our no-show rate from 8 –10% to 4–5%, which is where it currently stands. Last year we took it one step further by adding an automated email/text reminder system. This new software allowed us to take staff from their reminder call duties and focus more time on other revenue generat- ing activities. We have also found that when we engage with patients in ways they prefer, they are more likely to feel Ms. Gerlach is the director of operations at Boling Vision Center in Elkhart, Indiana. She can be contacted at hgerlach@ bolingvisioncenter.com. experience technology

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