Most providers are using new means to attract a broader patient base than in the past.
"Someone might have had good patient outcomes in the past and had steady referrals, but now the referral pattern has changed and specialists are getting referrals based on their employment with a certain health system," says Christopher Sliva, MD, a spine surgeon with Rockford (Ill.) Spine Center. "Those relationships with PCPs, while important, may not be as fruitful as they had been in the past. Now it's more important to directly make relationships with patients as well as other providers of spine care."
Here are seven innovative concepts for attractive new patients.
1. Direct patient marketing. With more primary care physicians becoming employed by the hospital — and referring their patients within the hospital's care network — private practices can suddenly find their hearty referral streams petering out. Instead of relying on the old referral network, some practices are engaging in a more direct-to-patient marketing campaign bringing in patients from miles around to maintain case volume.
"There are some practices that have collapsed and become subsumed by the local hospital systems because the referrals went away when the primary care physicians became employees," says Don Johnson, MD, medical director at Southeastern Spine Institute in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. "You have to increase the catch net for patients. We are involved in advertising and marketing across the state, over the internet and television."
The practice released six 30-minute infomercials over the past few years and hired a media specialist to lead the marketing campaigns. "You can't stay local anymore," says Dr. Johnson. "I don't think specialty medicine is a local phenomenon. Patients are willing to travel, especially if the care is efficient."
2. Practice brand development. Surgeons must market their private practices to drive patient volume and promote brand recognition. Khawar Siddique, MD, a fellowship-trained spine surgeon with Beverly Hills Spine Surgery in California, says it's important for practices to have a moniker that reflects their commitment to high level care, which is why his group decided to practice under the name "Beverly Hills Spine Surgery."
"Beverly Hills denotes a quality of care," says Dr. Siddique. "The name of your corporation should tell patients about the level of care you provide; such as Premier Spine Surgeons, Inc."
Focus on any aspects that make your group special in your marketing efforts. For example, if your group includes all fellowship-trained spine surgeons, tout your expertise to show you are a quality organization.
3. Exposure in the community. Find the opportunities in your community to promote education or sponsorship and take advantage of this exposure. DISC Sports & Spine Center in Marina Del Rey, Calif., has a multi-tiered approach to community involvement that includes both educational lectures and providing medical expertise for local sporting events.
"We put on a series of lectures for chiropractors and physical therapists, as well as internists and other referral sources," says Robert S. Bray, MD, neurosurgeon and founder of DISC Sports & Spine Center. "We make them educational-based and generate exposure for our group. The series might be focused on sports medicine or insurance coverage and we’ll sponsor lunches and different events around those topics."
DISC has seen positive return on investment for educational opportunities, and has now begun a series of lectures targeting high school coaches, parents and young athletes about injury prevention. To continue their educational efforts, the group also sponsors athletic events such as the Off-Shore Sailing race series.
"We have a presence at every one of the regattas and we provide bags or other materials that are a token from DISC," says Dr. Bray. "We help the organization develop brochures. We also have a presence at triathlete events. Grassroots community-based activities that align with your purpose can be very beneficial."
4. Online and social media targets. Online space can bring in new patients to the practice and provide additional information for patients who are referred by friends or primary care physicians.
"I think clearly the internet is going to be front and center in terms of driving patients into the practice," says Bryan Oh, MD, a neurosurgeon who focuses on spine surgery with BASIC Spine in Orange, Calif. "You can still go out and shake the hands of primary care physicians, but I think the Internet is the new frontier in terms of marketing practices and bringing patients in. We work with a practice management group to help us be more successful. I’ve gone from a practice of zero to a full clinic in almost nine months and I attribute this to Internet marketing."
If you are out there with targeted ads and other internet marketing, whoever is doing your marketing campaign should be able to give you concrete data about how many hits your website gets and what your conversion rates are. They can also tell you the patient demographics who are clicking through. If you are spending those marketing dollars, you need to make sure it’s translating into a good return for you.
5. Referral source relationships. In any given area, there are always a number of physicians that could serve as referral sources for spine and orthopedic surgeons. This group could include individuals such as primary care physicians and chiropractors. Referrals can be a significant portion of a spine or orthopedic surgeon's case volume.
"Although I like to think of medicine as a profession, it also has to be a business," says Dr. Tehrany. Forming strong professional ties is an important aspect of developing a successful business.
6. New technology to broaden treatment scope. Stay on the cutting edge of the spine field and actively engage in research and innovation. These efforts will raise your profile within the spine community and improve patient care at the local and national level.
"There are several ways for spine surgeons to make an impression on innovation, not just in spine surgery but in the healthcare system," says Dr. Sliva. "At Rockford Spine Center, we've tried to reduce the number of infections associated with spine surgery, which led to a study about using vancomycin. Adding to innovation for surgical principles or going back and revisiting basic surgical principles can lead to important innovations in spine care and healthcare."
Dr. Sliva and his colleagues were able to show how their unique use of vancomycin with spine surgical patients reduced the risk of infection, and now surgeons across the country use this process with their patients.
7. Availability for complicated cases. Complex patients take more energy and resources, but how surgeons handle these cases will dictate their reputation going forward. If surgeons only accept simple cases with otherwise healthy patients, they won't have a diversified patient base.
"Accepting complicated patients into the practice is an important part of building a reputation in the community," says Jennifer Sohal, MD, a spine surgeon with St. Vincent Spine Institute in Los Angeles. "When you take care of a wide spectrum of patients, the 'easy' and the 'complicated,' your community understands you are there to care for all patients with spine problems and so when they have any issues related to the spine they send them to you."
Successfully treating these patients will make you standout locally. "Have the willingness and ability to handle difficult cases, such as complex tumor or scoliosis," says Sean McCance, MD, co-director of spine surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital and director of Spine Associates in New York. "That often entails being at a program in a hospital or facility that has the infrastructure to handle those cases well."
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