subject: Sure-fire Tips To Re-direct Physician Referrals To Your Practice [print this page] Question: Can you provide some tactics to aid you in redirecting physician referrals back to a hospital out-patient imaging department in a competitive market when doctors are with money or gifts?
Answer: Its been our experience that while doctors may refer for various reasons, in almost 70 percent of practice situations, the patients are in actuality being directed by the office staff for imaging services. There are many practice marketing strategies and techniques you can use to make your center the imaging center of choice for your employees.
1. Provide the referring office a better reason to refer the patients to your center.
Does your center have a brand or unique value or why you are the best center? Are you teaching staff at referring offices about why your center should be their preferred imaging center?
2. Customer service, customer service, and customer service
Does your staff view the referring physician office staff as their customers? Many outpatient hospital imaging centers have trouble maintaining referrals from doctor offices as the staff doesnt view their role as requiring to provide a very high level of customer service to the doctors office staff, who are calling to make appointments. Make the staffs job easier and theyll influence the referrals. Do not put them on hold. If allowed in your geographic location, do you do all the pre-certifications?
3. Dedicate one individual to be the face of the imaging center.
Do you have a practice liaison who calls on the staff in referring offices as a problem-solver and trouble shooter? Provide the individual a cell phone and make it the go to number anytime any staff is having trouble getting a patient scheduled or issued with your centers personnel.
4. By presenting your brand, a strong reason to select you, providing the referring staff and patients with a high level of customer service and having a go to individual identified as your referring offices problem-solver youll build loyalty and referrals for years to come.
For more practice marketing (radiology marketing) tips, take the help of healthcare marketing agencies.
