If you’re a healthcare specialist, chances are referrals from other doctors are the lifeblood of your practice. Imagine what your bottom line would be without other physicians sending their patients your way.
Better yet, imagine how much more profitable it would be if you could improve your healthcare referral system.
Here are just a few of the strategies your practice can employ to do just that:
- Instead of simply maintaining a basic and unorganized referral network, develop a formal referral tracking system to internally follow and manage referrals and transitions – including your patients’ consultations with other specialists, hospitalization and ER visits, and referrals to community agencies.
- Generate periodic reports by each referring physician, including the names of the patients they’ve referred to you, diagnoses, and the type of specialized care you provided. This way, you can follow up with both the patients and the referring physicians in an organized fashion.
- Establish referral guidelines for all the physicians you work with, so they know what kinds of cases you specialize in. That way, they will think of you first when referring a patient.
- Notify the referring primary care physicians of any no-shows and cancellations.
- Inform the primary care physicians when inappropriate referrals are made. This will help to prevent recurrences and unnecessary appointments in the future.
- Ensure that patients are well-prepared for their referral visit, and that they know what to expect after they visit your practice.
- Follow up with referral providers about findings, next steps, and treatment plans to strengthen your networking ties.
Easier Said than Done?
If that sounds like a labor-intensive task for a medical practice that doesn’t have the time or expertise to focus on building a successful yet complex doctor referral system, that’s because it is.
If yours is like most healthcare practices, it is constantly trying to balance its day-to-day responsibilities with an ongoing effort to make the right connections and obtain referrals of patients with cases that fit your practice. However, this strategy is often difficult to maintain. Following up on referral sources is not easy, and falling behind on reporting can result in either losing referrals or seeing a reduction in the quality of cases you do receive.
That’s why, instead of trying to do all the heavy lifting in-house, you ought to consider outsourcing your doctor referral system to a proven leader in quality medical referral services.
The Solution to Improving Your Healthcare Referral System
At Doctor Referral Institute, we not only provide referrals for doctors specializing in all healthcare fields, we also provide comprehensive, state-of-the-art reporting – so you know which referring physicians we contacted, the value of the visit we facilitated, and the status of the contacts we established.
Our team of vetted and trained professionals average more than 10 years in the healthcare industry as doctors, nurses, pharmaceutical representatives, medical device salespeople, liaisons, and medical consultants. We have the continual support and proven system needed to provide your practice with the competitive edge it needs to realize the return on investment you’re looking for.
Our referral development specialists provide face-to-face representation with referral sources, and we are dedicated to building your reputation as a recognized leader in your field of specialty. We keep referral sources well-informed about the type of condition-specific patients you’re most qualified to serve; we also offer provider matching, exclusivity of your service territory, and detailed reporting to achieve the most competitive, cost-efficient business growth possible.
To learn about how Doctor Referral Institute can help you achieve your specific marketing needs, contact us today at (888) 703-9167 or fill out our consultation request form online now. We look forward to hearing from you.