Most people (44.7 percent) prefer to be contacted over the phone when scheduling for their next appointment, according to Jobson Optical Research’s Waiting Game Insight Survey. Scheduling an appointment before leaving the office came next with 19.7 percent choosing that mode of communication for recall. More of the younger respondents, ages of 18 to 34, preferred e-mail (17.9 percent) to the older 55+ age group (13.1 percent) and vice versa for regular mail, preferred by only 12.9 percent of the younger age group, and almost a quarter (24.9 percent) of the oldest age group.
Capture each patient’s preferred method of communication. Put this information in the patient’s record so it can be updated on each patient visit. Use a simple questionnaire with each patient such as:
What is the best way for us to communicate with you about your next office visit?
[ ] E-mail
[ ] Telephone
[ ] Text message
[ ] Traditional mail
[ ] Twitter
Make sure you create office systems that utilize the patient’s preferred method of communication. There are excellent programs available today that can help you manage patient communications more effectively.
Increasing the effectiveness of your patient communications results in increased patient compliance with your prescribed treatment plans.
Handle this today.
