Marketing Your Clinical Practice : Ethically, Effectively, Economically

by Baum, Neil

• ISBN13: 9780834217454
• ISBN10: 0834217457
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-03-01
• Publisher: Jones & Bartlett Pub

Summary

From creating a pleasant reception area to increasing referrals to creating a Web Site, this new edition of Dr. Baum's best-selling guide takes physicians step-by-sep through the process needed to promote a clinical practice.

Table of Contents

Contributors	xvii
Foreword	xix
Introduction	xxi
Acknowledgments	xxix
PILLAR I---LOVE THE ONES YOU'RE WITH: KEEPING THE PATIENTS YOU ALREADY HAVE	1	(130)
Giving Your Practice a Checkup	3	(16)
Personal Interviews	4	(1)
Patient Surveys	4	(9)
Focus Groups	13	(1)
Suggestion Box	14	(2)
Physician Surveys	16	(3)
Mystery Shop 'Til You Drop	19	(5)
Don't Be Late for a Very Important Date	24	(9)
Do Not Keep Patients Waiting	25	(1)
Identify Problem Areas	26	(1)
Manage Interruptions	27	(1)
Do Not Ignore Delays	28	(1)
Twelve Time-Busters	29	(4)
Identifying Moments of Truth	33	(6)
Create A Patient Cycle	33	(1)
What To Watch For	34	(2)
Don't Forget the Hospital and Outside Testing Facilities	36	(1)
Other Methods of Discovery	37	(1)
Turn Negatives Into Positives	37	(2)
If Domino's Delivers, So Can We	39	(6)
Learning From Domino's	39	(1)
How Personal Information Notes Are Used	40	(3)
Lessons Learned From the Container Store	43	(2)
Your Reception Area Is Your Opportunity To Create a Good First Impression	45	(11)
Avoid Negative Perceptions	46	(1)
Reconfigure Your Reception Area	47	(2)
Provide Distractions	49	(2)
Provide a Variety of Reading Materials	51	(1)
Guide Your Patients to Internet Sites	52	(1)
More About You and Your Staff	53	(1)
Other Touches	54	(2)
Improve Patient Compliance---Provide Medication Information	56	(8)
Marketing on 10 Minutes a Day	64	(5)
Who Are Your Key Patients?	64	(2)
Who Should Call the Key Patients?	66	(1)
What Time Should You Call Key Patients?	66	(1)
What Are the Advantages?	67	(1)
Possible Disadvantages	67	(2)
Different Strokes for Different Folks: Dealing with Demanding Patients	69	(5)
Marketing and Difficult Patients	70	(4)
Track Your Oldies and They Will Become Goodies	74	(3)
Resurrecting Records: A Transfer Request Does Not Mean Good-Bye	77	(3)
Clean Up Your Claims and Create ``Practice Appeal''	80	(10)
Patricia T. Aalseth
Code it Right the First Time	80	(2)
Beat the Clock	82	(1)
The Right Stuff	83	(1)
Get Permission, Not Forgiveness	83	(1)
The Errors of Our Ways	84	(1)
The Truth and Nothing but the Truth	85	(1)
Squeezing the Turnip	86	(3)
Dialing for Dollars	89	(1)
Leave a Paper Trail...That Leads to the Bottom Line	90	(12)
Welcome to the Practice	90	(2)
Thank You for Consulting Us	92	(1)
Thank You for Your Prompt Payment	92	(1)
Thank You for the Referral	92	(2)
Here's a New Patient	94	(1)
Your Balance is $0.00	94	(1)
Saw You in the News	95	(1)
Sorry About the Delay	96	(1)
Birthday Cards	96	(1)
Welcome to the Area	96	(1)
Thanks for the Compliment	97	(1)
Suggestion Box Replies	98	(1)
Authorizations, Consultations, and More	99	(3)
Stuffers Soften the Bite of the Bill	102	(14)
Choosing Your Topics	103	(5)
Opportunity To Educate	108	(8)
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words: Creating Office Videos	116	(8)
What Are the Advantages?	116	(2)
Potential Subjects for Office Videos	118	(1)
How To Create a Video	118	(4)
Where To Show the Videos	122	(2)
Need More Patients? Brochures Are the Cure	124	(7)
What To Include	125	(3)
Production, Design, and Printing	128	(1)
Distributing the Brochure	129	(2)
PILLAR II---EXTERNAL MARKETING: ATTRACTING NEW PATIENTS TO YOUR PRACTICE	131	(120)
Your Net Worth Is Related to Your Network	135	(8)
Networking Shared Experiences	135	(2)
Alternatives to Phone Calls	137	(1)
Networking for Feedback	138	(3)
Community Networking	141	(2)
There's Strength in Numbers When You Start a Support Group	143	(6)
Topics, Dates, and Places	144	(1)
Choosing Speakers	144	(1)
Getting People to the Meeting	145	(1)
Setting Up the Meeting	146	(1)
Conducting the Support Group Meeting	146	(1)
Following Up	147	(2)
Marketing to Ethnic Communities	149	(6)
Do Your Homework	149	(2)
Techniques To Attract Ethnic Groups	151	(4)
Closing the Generation Gaps: Marketing to Boomers and Seniors	155	(11)
Who Are They?	155	(1)
Promoting Your Practice to Baby Boomers	156	(4)
Promoting Your Practice to the Mature Market	160	(6)
Write that Masterpiece---and Send It to the Lay Press	166	(7)
Why Write for the Lay Press?	166	(1)
How To Select a Topic	167	(1)
Making a Pitch to the Editor	168	(2)
Doing the Hard Work	170	(1)
Capitalizing on your Clips	171	(1)
Be Prepared for Rejection	171	(2)
Nothing Does It Better...Than a Newsletter	173	(10)
Why Write a Newsletter?	174	(2)
Keep the Faith	176	(1)
Consider Your Options	176	(1)
Planning and Topic Selection	177	(1)
Writing the Newsletter Copy	178	(1)
Design and Promotion	179	(1)
Getting the Newsletter Out	180	(1)
Other Uses for Newsletters	181	(2)
Follow the Yellow Page Road	183	(7)
Getting Started	184	(1)
Who Should Create the Ad?	184	(1)
Elements of a Good Display Ad	185	(2)
Tracking the Results	187	(1)
Which Directory Should You Advertise In?	188	(1)
More Yellow Pages Tips	188	(2)
Care and Feeding of Your Website: Learning To Love Spiders and Crawlers	190	(12)
Web Hosting Services	191	(1)
Selecting a Domain Name	191	(1)
Register Your Domain Name	192	(1)
Website Development---Do It Yourself or Hire a Professional?	193	(1)
Getting Your Web Page Noticed	194	(2)
Direct Marketing	196	(1)
Links Management	197	(1)
Search Engines	197	(1)
Major Search Engines	198	(1)
Measuring Methods	199	(1)
Feedback	200	(2)
One Small Click for Your Patients, One Giant Leap for Your Practice!	202	(6)
Disease Management	204	(1)
Survey Patients Online	204	(1)
Program Disadvantages	205	(1)
Concern Over Documentation	205	(1)
What Does it Cost?	205	(1)
Getting Started	206	(1)
Future of this Technology	207	(1)
Creating Powerful Presentations through Public Speaking	208	(13)
Getting on the Program	209	(1)
Know Your Audience	209	(1)
Preparing Your Speech	210	(2)
Getting the Audience's Attention	212	(1)
Practice Makes Perfect	213	(1)
Making Preparations	213	(1)
``Let Me Introduce Myself''	214	(1)
Don't Run Out the Door	214	(6)
Appendix 26-A	220	(1)
Make Slides That Sizzle	221	(10)
Keep the Content Simple and Direct	222	(1)
Stylistic Elements	222	(2)
Choosing Color Combinations	224	(1)
Using Space to Advantage	224	(2)
How Many Slides?	226	(1)
Produce Your Own Slides	226	(1)
Put Punch in Your Presentations with Powerpoint	227	(2)
Presentation Tips	229	(2)
Meet the Press: Create Credibility through Celebrity	231	(10)
Booking an Interview	231	(1)
Planning Your Presentation	232	(1)
Dressing the Part	233	(1)
Preparing a Checklist	233	(1)
It's Showtime!	234	(1)
Strut Your Stuff as a Talk Show Host	235	(3)
How To Get Started	238	(1)
Keeping the Show Going	239	(1)
A Few Caveats	240	(1)
Become an Instant Expert: Write the Book	241	(10)
In the Beginning Is the Idea	242	(1)
Evaluating Your Idea	242	(1)
Researching and Writing the Proposal	243	(1)
An Agent or Not?	244	(2)
A Contract is Offered---Now What?	246	(2)
Getting to Work!	248	(1)
The Book Is Written...You're Not Finished Yet!	248	(3)
PILLAR III---MOTIVATING YOUR STAFF	251	(42)
Go for the Goal: How to Create Team Spirit	253	(19)
Working Together To Create Goals	253	(1)
Creating a Mission Statement	254	(1)
Constructing a Policy Manual	254	(2)
No-Cost Techniques To Motivate Staff	256	(16)
Add Sparkle to Your Staff Meetings	272	(5)
Types of Meetings	273	(1)
Starting on a Positive Note	273	(1)
Working Together	273	(2)
Stimulating Staff Involvement	275	(2)
Reach Out and Touch Someone: The Telephone Is the Lifeline of Your Practice	277	(6)
Answering the Phone: A Five-Step Technique	278	(1)
Screening Calls	279	(1)
Training and Background	280	(1)
Make Every ``Hold'' Second Count	281	(1)
Other Extras To Increase Telephone Power	281	(2)
Break Bread and Break the Ice: Start a Lunch-and-Learn Program and Referrals from Colleagues Will Follow	283	(4)
Organizing the Luncheon	284	(1)
The Luncheon Program	284	(1)
Leave Your Staff Alone	285	(1)
Program Benefits	285	(2)
A Match Made in Heaven: Hiring the Perfect Employee for Your Practice	287	(6)
Screening Your Applicants	288	(1)
The Interview Process	288	(5)
PILLAR IV---COMMUNICATING WITH OTHER PHYSICIANS, OTHER PROFESSIONALS, AND MANAGED CARE PLANS	293	(80)
How To Obtain and Maintain Physician Referrals: It Takes Patience, Persistence, Politeness, and Prompt Reporting	295	(17)
Facts of Life	309	(3)
Generating Referrals from Nontraditional Sources	312	(12)
Target Your Market	314	(1)
Other Referral Sources	315	(3)
Imaging and Marketing	318	(1)
From Alternative to Complementary	319	(2)
An Idea That Did Not Work	321	(1)
Approaching Potential Referral Sources	322	(2)
Avoid Managed Care Paralysis: Conduct a Practice Analysis	324	(17)
Doing Your Homework	324	(9)
How To Use Practice Analysis Material	333	(1)
After You Are Accepted	334	(1)
Suppose They Say No	334	(2)
Caring Enough To Send the Very Best	336	(3)
Staying on a Panel	339	(2)
Deselection: A Game of Musical Chairs	341	(5)
Where Are You in the Network Chain?	341	(1)
Take a Proactive Approach	342	(1)
Do Not Discount Quality of Care	342	(1)
What Drives Patient Satisfaction?	342	(1)
Physician Profiling	343	(1)
How Patients Perceive Value	344	(2)
How To Be a Darling of the Managed Care Plans	346	(7)
Have You Looked at Your Profile Lately?	346	(1)
A Standard Format for Health Care Data	347	(2)
Match Your HEDIS Profile to Employers' Expectations	349	(4)
Make the Hospital Your Marketing Ally, Not Your Adversary	353	(5)
Shared Interests	354	(4)
Big Can Be Better: Marketing for Large Groups and Multispecialty Group Practices	358	(7)
How To Help Your Group	359	(1)
The Importance of Networking	359	(1)
Providing Services for Referring Physicians	360	(3)
Marketing a Large Single Specialty Practice	363	(1)
Other Ideas	364	(1)
Birds Do It, Bees Do It, Even Ivory Tower Doctors Do It	365	(8)
Making Patients Comfortable	366	(2)
Establishing Relationships with ``Outside'' Physicians	368	(1)
International Marketing	369	(1)
Outward Bound	370	(3)
PILLAR V---TECHNOLOGY, TOYS, AND TIPS	373	(116)
Let Technology Simplify Your Life	375	(16)
Electronic Medical Records to the Rescue	375	(6)
Promote Your Practice with Computerized Patient Education Method	381	(4)
Voice Recognition Software	385	(2)
Using Automated Phone Answering Systems	387	(1)
Stop Playing Phone Tag with Patients	388	(3)
Compliance: Minimize Risks and maximize Marketing Potential	391	(13)
Karen E. Davidson
The Buzz about Compliance	392	(1)
Defining Fraud and Abuse	392	(1)
Why Private Payers Care about Fraud and Abuse	393	(1)
Clarifying Compliance Plans	393	(2)
Essential Elements of a Compliance Plan	395	(2)
Minimizing Risks	397	(1)
Good Compliance is Good Marketing	398	(2)
Does Your Practice Need a Compliance Plan?	400	(1)
Costs of Implementing an Effective Compliance Plan	400	(1)
Getting Started with Compliance Initiatives	401	(1)
Conclusion	402	(2)
The Buck Stops Here: Is Your Coding Up to Par?	404	(9)
Patricia T. Aalseth
Yes, Virginia, There Are Ruels	405	(1)
Diagnosing the Diagnosis	405	(3)
Routine Visits: The Vicious ``V'' Codes	408	(1)
Bending the Rules---Just This Once	408	(1)
Bill What You Say, Not What You Do	409	(1)
Procedures---Doing the Right Thing	409	(1)
Linking up to Reimbursement	410	(1)
What You Say Is What They Will Pay (We Hope)	410	(1)
The Whole World Is Watching	411	(2)
When You Are in the Market for a New Associate	413	(12)
Roger G. Bonds
Objectively Assess Needs	414	(1)
Generate a Group Consensus	415	(2)
Perform an Internal Assessment	417	(1)
Address Hidden Agendas	418	(1)
Establish a Budget	418	(1)
Finding Candidates and Keeping Costs Down	419	(1)
Develop a Recruitment Campaign Plan	420	(1)
Reviewing the Curriculam Vitae and Interviewing	421	(1)
Background Searches a Must	422	(1)
Checking References	422	(1)
Expect a Background Search on You, Too!	423	(1)
Contract Development	423	(2)
A New Revenue Resource: Clinical Research	425	(6)
Income and Intellectual Challenges	425	(1)
You Must Commit	426	(1)
Getting Started	427	(1)
Attracting Patients to Your Studies	428	(1)
Create a Positive Experience for the Monitor	428	(2)
Future of Clinical Research	430	(1)
Market Your Expertise As an Expert Witness	431	(9)
Why Become an Expert Witness?	431	(1)
What Is Involved?	432	(1)
The Document, Please	432	(1)
Tips on Diagnosis	433	(1)
Other Steps	434	(1)
Walk the Walk and Talk the Talk	434	(1)
Do Your Homework	435	(1)
Do Not Let Cross-Examination Cross You Up	436	(1)
Fee Arrangements	437	(1)
Where the Opportunities Lie	438	(2)
Do Niche Marketing As a Super Specialist	440	(5)
The Focused Factory Concept	440	(1)
Examples of Health Care Focused Factories	441	(1)
Why Focused Factories?	442	(1)
Any Bad News?	443	(2)
When Dollars Make Sense: Using a Practice Cost Analysis To Market Your Practice	445	(12)
Cynthia D. Fry
Establish Analysis Objectives	446	(1)
Forecast Any Related Economic Developments	447	(1)
Determine and Evaluate Key Financial Indicators	447	(4)
Summarize Findings and Reach Conclusions	451	(3)
Act Upon Information: Reevaluate At Regular Intervals	454	(2)
Final Thoughts	456	(1)
Giving Our Patients a Federal Express Experience	457	(3)
How Does the FedEx Philosophy Work?	457	(1)
Fedex and Health Care Providers	457	(1)
Parallels between FedEx and Physicians	458	(1)
Invite and Heed the Truth	458	(2)
Hiring a Marketing Consultant	460	(6)
Be Ready for Your Consultant	461	(1)
Objectives	461	(2)
How To Find a Consultant	463	(1)
How Much Will it Cost?	463	(1)
Other Sources of Advice	463	(1)
Measuring Results	464	(2)
Medicine, Marketing, and Mirth: Having Fun with Your Medical Practice	466	(9)
Humor and Medicine Go Back a Long Way	467	(1)
Humor Starts with the Top Banana	467	(1)
Why Does Humor Work?	467	(6)
Humor and the Patient	473	(2)
Lagniappe (Something Extra)	475	(8)
Something Extra for Patients	475	(1)
Want Success? Remember Rolodex	476	(1)
Create an Idea Fund	477	(1)
Cultural Rewards	477	(1)
Remember Your Answering Service	477	(1)
Avoid Hide and Seek in the Office	477	(1)
One Way of Getting a Report to an Attorney	477	(1)
The All-Purpose Prescription Pad	478	(1)
Purge Office Reading Material	479	(1)
Pick up the Phone	479	(1)
Something Extra for Staff	479	(4)
Getting Started: The Secrets of Marketing Success	483	(6)
Does Marketing Work?	485	(2)
Conclusion	487	(2)
Index	489	(14)
About the Authors	503