Online Identity
Patients and referring physicians need to be able to find you quickly and easily.
How is your website? Be sure to include lots of content on the ailments you treat, infusions offered, and easy information on how to refer to the center. Update your website regularly to keep it at the top of search results.
Are your online profiles accurate? This includes your own social media and also sites that list you like Healthgrades. Be sure those are all updated including location, hours, holiday hours, and how to contact you. And, be sure to respond to any reviews on sites. If there are themes in the reviews, consider updating your protocols or managing expectations proactively.
Physician Outreach
A great physician outreach strategy is a wonderful way to grow referrals to your infusion center. Build a solid list and scrub it ahead of time. I find that investing the time to build a great list with accurate names, addresses, specialties, and insight saves a ton of time later. For instance, if a physician has an infusion chair in their office, probably not worth going to visit. And, if you do, be prepared to talk about non-competing services that you offer. Specialties to consider: Gastroenterology, Neurology, Functional Medicine, Infectious Diseases, Rheumatology, Allergists, Endocrinology, Oncology, and Wound Care. Start pretty close to your location (maybe 3 miles and work your way out depending on the consumer flow through the community).
Have a strong value proposition and make the visit about their needs. Secret shop your competitors. Make their weaknesses your strengths. A spa-like environment is a big selling point for consumers. Happy patients are a good step towards happy referring physicians. Make it easy on referring physicians. Remove any barriers you can (handle pre-authorizations, get people in quickly).
Nurture the relationship after the initial outreach with follow-up visits, check-ins, and a thank you!
Patient Experience
How is your patient experience? What do your reviews say? Secret shop your practice to see how it feels to be a patient there. How long does it take to get an appointment? Is the staff friendly? Is the signage welcoming? Is the infusion center immaculately clean? Do you ask patients to fill out 8 pages of forms with repetitive information? Would you want to have an infusion there? It should feel more like a spa and less like a medical office.