Pulsation System (Johnson & John-
son Vision). Dr. Patel found that by
bringing on these technologies, she
has brought in new business, though
it was not the primary reason she
decided to invest in them. "It was pa-
tient-driven," Dr. Patel said. Patients
would come in wanting premium
lenses that a neighbor from another
city had or they wanted LASIK but
were not candidates due to dry eye.
Scenarios like these are what led Dr.
Patel to bring in LenSx and LipiFlow.
Since then, Dr. Patel said the dry
eye population has been coming out
of the woodwork.
"I never set out to be the dry
eye specialist of Wichita; it seems
to have happened organically,"
she said. "Having the technology
not only helped the patients that I
had at that time, but it also acted
as a mechanism for attracting new
patients. They are now seeking me
out, even though we do not advertise
aside from our website and on social
media."
Dr. Patel said that after she start-
ed offering iDesign for LASIK, she
received consults based on the word
of her first patient.
"Happy patients will go out and
tell everyone; unhappy patients will
tell everyone times two," Dr. Patel
said.
Edward Rubinchik, MD, Smart
Eye Care, New York, has had a similar
experience in bringing in new tech-
nologies.
"Ophthalmologists don't have
a good way to know what other
practices are doing and instead are
constantly trying to improve our pa-
tient experiences. We grow by word-
of-mouth referrals, and those come
from happy patients," Dr. Rubinchik
said.
July 2018 • Ophthalmology Business 21
Dr. Patel has received many referrals as a result of bringing on new technologies.
Source: Reena Patel, MD
continued on page 22
