Keep clients close with frequent communication.
By Dale Reckless, PT
Communication and Connection—they go hand in hand when your patient arrives for their initial evaluation. From the first impression at the front office, to your thorough diagnostic testing and treatment skills, the patient experience must be positive and encouraging. Leaving your impressive brand with the patient will help you as an owner, director, and therapist meet the needs of the patient from both a physical and emotional perspective. This is the reason our patients come to see us, correct? Oftentimes, even excellent clinicians overlook the importance of necessary communication and ultimately leave the patient with questions, either from a misunderstanding or a lack of information. Patients may go home with unanswered questions, leading to a poor awareness of their exercises or treatment plan. Or perhaps a patient may complete a treatment plan, only later to find out that they pursued therapy elsewhere even though it appeared that they were happy with their care and had great outcomes. Did a therapist miss an opportunity for connecting? The question then becomes why they went elsewhere? How can the therapist close the loop to keep satisfied clientele coming back when they need additional therapy services?
Making it easy to evaluate patient satisfaction.
By Michael Connors, PT, DPT, PhD
We live in a digital age where satisfaction exists in many online formats, ranging from Google to Yelp reviews. A great experience is typically rewarded with a positive review, while a negative review is typically filled with words the private practice owner should scrutinize. Paper-based patient satisfaction surveys are a thing of the past. Most patients possess the technological savvy to help add to the digital footprint of the patient satisfaction reviews for your practice.
How to innovate wisely.
By Emily Teetzen, PT, DPT
Private practice physical therapy sits at the intersection between health care and business, both of which can present challenges. You are running a clinic in a fluid, ever-changing market while also facing the challenges presented within the health care system, which can be just as unpredictable and tumultuous. Direct access has increased our access to patients, but their path to our door can still be riddled with hurdles such as insurance coverage, visit limitations, copays, and physician referrals. You play a game of constant adaptation in trying to maintain your company’s unique identity while continuing to provide the best service and patient care. In addition, private practices need to innovate to attract and maintain effective and driven employees.
The dangers of a web-based system.
By Adam R. Aitken*
When it comes to electronic medical record (EMR) systems, there are two types: web and app. Before we get into the dangers of the web-based system, let’s discuss, at a high level, how these two technologies function.
Turning a napkin sketch into a residual check: bringing a physical therapy product to market.
By Michael Todd Smith
Most million-dollar ideas are actually worth a dime a dozen. The true challenge for inventors and entrepreneurs is making a million dollars, a few thousand dollars, or any money at all, by turning an idea into a product and getting it to market. Physical therapists work with the human body day in and day out; it’s not uncommon for a light bulb to turn on with a brilliant idea that could change the industry and greatly improve patient lives. While genius can strike in an instant, there’s a long journey to turn that napkin sketch into a residual check. Here are some expert tips to guide you and a few landmines to avoid.
