Physician Integration: The Key to Successful Healthcare Marketing

We’ve been talking a lot about new trends in healthcare marketing like social media efforts and community outreach, but the most important component in marketing your practice is what we like to call “physician integration.”  USA Today discussed last week the new way hospitals have started to implement this.  They call it the physician-to-physician sales approach.  Tenet Healthcare, one of the largest for-profit hospital chains, has adopted this by hiring sales representatives to serve as face-to-face marketers to improve their hospitals’ referral rates.  There are many supporters and critics of this process, however it is evident that there is value to the process.  Success however, lies in the intrinsic goal of these individuals and the way the marketing is put in place. Our marketing representatives have been doing this for independent practices for years, serving as physician’s liaisons and extensions of the referring practices.

                 

Most hospitals have hired on former drug reps due to their experience in the medical field, this is sometimes counterproductive because they can have tunnel-vision on one specialty and can come off too “salesy”.  The key to successful physician integration is providing added value to referring physicians and serving as an outlet and also source for success.  In the same ways that large practices are leaning on ACO’s for shared success, physician outreach aims to help connect physicians in a mutually beneficial way.  Often times specialists love this concept because they have a lot to gain from general practitioners, however that family practice physician rarely sees the benefits of that relationship.  Our mission is to find routes for referrals for every niche in healthcare.

(Photo courtesy of Adrenaline)

The strategy for creating these ties requires three things:

1. Knowledgeable and personable marketing representatives with a sales-centric focus, without wasting the time of the physicians
2. Physicians seeing a need for the process
3. Then the adoption and involvement of the physicians

Hospital CEOs have seen the need for this type of marketing in their mission to find ways to increase patient referrals, without increasing unnecessary admissions, while also improving patient ratings.  This is essentially the same need that we see independent practices having, of course on a smaller scale it is much simpler to implement, as we can more easily understand the needs of physicians and patients at a more localized level.  Just as Michelle Osipowicz states in the USA Today article, it is important to listen to and address the concerns of referring physicians to successfully provide that value. 

By aiding these practices in their physician outreach programs, we help them to achieve improved community presence, serving as an influencer in the industry, which has a direct effect on the practice’s patient volume.  This type of practice-to-practice approach, when combined with social media excellence, community involvement and continued quality service results in ensured overall practice success.

What Independent Physicians Can Learn from Hospital Systems

Recent conversations in the healthcare world have suggested that practices either need to go big or go home in regards to their associations in the future.  The highly controversial trend towards ACOs and large practices or hospitals buying out smaller, independent practices suggests that those small groups had better join forces if they want to survive. This could not be farther from the truth, and there is something to be said about the preservation of the “independent physician.” The fact is that independence equates to sovereignty, whether you’re talking about states or practices.

In our experience with many talented and notable physicians over the years we have come to realize that doctors are by nature, autonomous.  Of course there are instances where this is untrue, but it seems to be a general concern, that physicians who have worked so hard to build their own, independent practice are not going to want to throw away their dedication to join a large system. Those big fish usually like their little sea. So we have dedicated time to find ways in aiding these providers to find success without giving away their independence.

                                          

From a patient perspective, there are pros and cons to both types of physicians but let’s focus on the important part of patient care. CARE. When something is wrong or you have been diagnosed with an unfortunate condition, do you want to be a number, or do you want to be Ms. Jane Doe with a name and a face to go with your medical chart.  As a patient, it is important to me to feel confident in my physician and there is something about an independent facility that make me feel more comfortable.

From the perspective of the independent practice, competing with larger scaled practices can be daunting. It is important for those facilities to play up their strengths and learn from the expansive marketing campaigns that have been successful for large hospitals like The Mayo Clinic. While the process based off of a grander scale, hospital-based practices and independent facilities do share the same intrinsic end goal and that is wellness, convenience and quality care for patients. A number of social media practices implemented by hospitals like The Mayo Clinic could easily be put into action at a smaller level, such as:

-       becoming a resource for medical information through social media by encouraging your doctors to get involved

-       sharing knowledge through blogging, ex: testimonials, success stories and things healthcare professionals have learned through their experience in the field

-       using real-time communication and updates through Twitter, some hospitals have done this in correlation with The American Red Cross or with the participation of families with a relative in surgery for live updates

-       Fundraising for events or local charities

-       Communicating with current, previous and potential patients from a customer service aspect

-       Connecting patient or patient family followers to helpful community resources and deals. Ex: Sending out a coupon for a local floral shop

-       Patient highlights and involvement to promote an encouraging environment

There are many ways to implement these processes, but the fact is that no matter if your practice is located in Downtown Manhattan or in Norfolk, Nebraska, these social media campaigns can be personalized and successful.

If these social media marketing initiatives are used correctly, a practice of any size can gain leverage in the industry. Author Richard Reece points out that a practice’s capacity for success is dependent upon the way leverage is managed however.  He comments saying, “Leverage is a fragile, malleable thing. It depends on public trust.”  In order to balance your practice’s leverage, no matter the size, one must focus on; management, chains of command, administrative abilities and the implementation of leadership practice values.

The Best Medical Billing Practices Are Controlled and Outsourced

You do not have to be a genius to recognize that the healthcare industry is constantly transforming due to rapidadvancements in technology and medicine.  Thinking back to simpler times when physicians made house calls and gained “fans” by always having the best lollipops for patients, it is surprising how many things providers have to worry about nowadays.  Between social media demands, EHRs on iPads, ICD-10 Changes and the lowest-ever reimbursement levels, it is no wonder that KevinMD blogger, Dr. Juan J. Reyes and his peers, would be concerned with physicians disillusionment of the industry.  He discusses that the way for physicians to become more motivated is to add more to their plate, essentially. He focuses on improved “fulfillment” for physicians, and while we are all for physician involvement, he suggests drawing physician attention away from finances.

Ah, common ground. We agree that a provider’s time is being wasted if he is constantly focused on where they are losing money.  The solution is, of course, outsourcing the billing and collections to an agency that specializes in the process.  Often times, physicians are hesitant about this process because their billing and coding is so internalized they do not want to lose control, or their staff, who they tend to have personal relationships with. The fact is that antiquated coding principles are costly and mistakes go un-noticed, which leads to practices scratching their heads wondering where all their money is going.  Unforeseen costs of doing billing internally add up quickly as well when you take into consideration things like; phone bills, software, training, penalties, materials etcetera.  The key to success for practices that suffer low collections, is accepting that they need help.  Once struggling practices outsource these steps, they can get back to focusing on care, which is why they got involved with this industry in the first place.

It is important for practices to be cautious in their choices however when it comes to billing and collections, because you don’t want to shoot yourself in the foot by sacrificing control and practice values. Before making any decisions, physicians need to be assured that the medical billing practices are in line with their practice’s expectations in regards to control of payments, personnel and data.

Social Media in Health Care: Tricks of the Trade

When the first signs of social media surfaced in the early 2000s, who would have guessed that it would serve as the platform for how public relations and marketing operate? The reality is that social media has truly transformed each and every consumer industry in existence, and that includes health care.                                              

We have come a long way from MySpace and chat rooms.  Now, Twitter can serve as a major news source, Facebook spreads the word about your business to your community, LinkedIn enables professionals to make networking connections to individuals they would have never seen as a peer and blogging has expanded the barriers of learning. 

The trouble with this social media revolution is that the train has been trucking along for a few years now, and the health care industry is just now trying to jump aboard.  It is funny, considering most people would suspect that the medical world would be rather technologically advanced, but it is quite the opposite.  Almost every radiologist that we have met with or spoken to has voiced their interest in getting involved with social media, but the problem is that they do not even know where to begin. No one wants to devote time and energy to something that will end up having little to no return on investment, which is where we have been able to come in and save the day.

* [Taken from our Social Media Analytics]

The proof is in the pudding, though and the sheer amount of website traffic we have generated to our website over the past few months is a direct result of our efforts.  While there is no exact recipe to follow for social media success, Shama Hyder Kabani’s book The Zen of Social Media Marketing, can serve as a great starting point.  Since the book focuses on businesses as a whole, and the health care sector of business is it’s own unique niche,we have also created a basic checklist for physicians to determine where they are on the path to social media stardom, so please feel free to reference it as a guide.

If you are still skeptical of the benefits of online media marketing, simply take a look at any of the health care blogs that have been discussing the new trends in technology, you will see that patient-friendly and physician-friendly website applications and programs are having a huge impact on where care is headed. The new frontier of personalized health care, price shopping for services, and the entire patient experience and sense of control is being put directly into the hands of patients and providers alike, in the form of their iPhones, Androids, Blackberries and iPads. So run and catch that train to success folks.

Charitable Giving: The New Standard for "Quality Service"

Atlantic Health Solutions is dedicated to our mission of devoted service; this involves establishing a culture of care at all of our facilities throughout the year, but focusing especially on that mission during the holiday season.

The staff at Atlantic Health Solutions focuses on charitable giving throughout the year in many ways and challenges our facilities to be involved with community outreach as well.  The diagnostic imaging centers we work with donate their time to service opportunities in their area and also work to start charitable traditions of their own.

  Advanced Imaging Centers (Florida) and Compass Imaging (Mississippi) worked together during October to promote the Pinky Swear Campaign they created which worked to spread the word about the importance of Early Detection and fundraising during Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  The campaign utilized a “pay it forward” approach, in which patients, staff and referring offices vowed to tell three people important to them about early detection and swearing that they would get screened, due to the role that early detection can have in the survival rate of breast cancer patients. They also participated in Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walks and handed out coupons for discounted screens on their new Digital Mammography unit.

At Northeast Nebraska Imaging Center in Norfolk, they tried something new this year. The center as a whole has adopted a family of three, a single mother and her two children. The staff went shopping and found everything on their list, which means that they have provided the family with all of their needed supplies as well as some holiday cheer. Northeast Nebraska Imaging is also helping to grant a Christmas Wish for a Northeast Nebraskan Family by donating to US92’s Christmas Wish Program.  The Christmas Wish Program, put on by the local radio station in Norfolk received hundreds of letters from Northeast Nebraskans who nominated someone that was in need this year. With the help of the Fraternal Order of Police and donations such as Northeast Nebraska’s, US92 can continue to grant as many wishes as possible. 
 
In November, Northeast Nebraska Imaging also participated in The Warm Heart, Warm Hands Glove Campaign, delivering boxes to area clinics so that their staff and patients could donate gloves, hats, mittens and coats to help the area’s Bright Horizons locations. The center collected 127 hats, mittens, gloves, scarves and coats for charity.

                                

Atlantic Health Solutions ourselves have donated gifts and our time to the Metropolitan Ministries, a charity dedicated community outreach and providing resources to help those in need find food, clothing, shelter and other services all year around but especially during the holiday season.  Their mission is to alleviate suffering, promote dignity and instill self-sufficiency, which if you think about it, are things that our facilities work towards each and every day.

Metropolitan Ministries is in the running to win a $50,000 grant from The Pepsi Refresh Project, please vote here to increase their chances of being awarded this miracle-making grant.