Unified Practice

Helping your patients understand and focus on measures that promote a healthy lifestyle can be very time consuming. It requires continuous communication and engagement with your patients and the ability to provide them with useful information. After all, helping your patients feel better and engaging with them along the way leads to increased success for your practice. But how can you find the time for these interactions and what are the best ways to engage with patients? Here are 8 great ways to engage with your patients:

1. Automated Appointment Reminders
Setting up automated appointment reminders in your acupuncture practice management software is by far the easiest way to stay in touch with your patients. Beyond keeping track of patients to remind them of their appointments, effective acupuncture EHR and practice management should include a variety of other ways to reach out, engage and collect feedback and reviews from patients.

2. Social Media – Utilize social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter
Starting a Facebook page or Twitter account will ensure that those who enjoy spending time browsing social media on a daily basis will effortlessly and subtly receive pertinent information about your practice. You will be surprised how many of your patients are active on these networks, so don’t overlook them .

3. A short blog, bearing your name or the name of your clinic
These can be articles that deal with daily health issues that will remind patients in a positive way of your practice on a daily basis.

4. Video Blogs
Along the same lines a v-log (video blog) could be a fresh and entertaining way to engage patients who need a more visual means of connection. By making clear videos like “How to Take My Herbs” or “Shoulder Exercises for Frozen Shoulder” is a powerful medium that your patient can watch and be influenced by you outside the clinic.

5. Mail old fashioned Physical Cards
Setting technology aside, you can’t go wrong with physical cards. Not only do people enjoy getting mail, but these cards cannot be overlooked as Facebook can be. A physical card may have a higher likelihood of being read by patients who are not plugged into social media.

6. Call 5 patients every day
In addition, each day, practitioners and front desk staff could be in charge of 5 calls to 5 patients. These could serve as friendly check-up and check-ins. Patients appreciate it when health-care providers show interest in their health outside the clinic. Patients are also more likely to book an appointment while they are on the phone with you.

7. Host a talk at a local community hot-spot
An additional tool to connect with patients could be to host a talk at a local community hot-spot. The topics could be different every month, relating to holistic health care advances, products, topics, etc. It would be helpful to bring in experienced members of the community to host the talks.

8. Host a party
Finally, who doesn’t love a party? Parties are fun to host and attend. Different seasonal parties could be held, featuring snacks and door prizes. This is a great way to show that while professionalism is important, you understand that a bit of fun is necessary, too.

TCM practitioners understand that health care goes beyond the time your patients spend at the clinic. Connecting and engaging with patients through various means on a daily basis is key to a successful relationship between practitioner and patient. Acupuncture EHR and practice management software can make this much easier to manage. Continuous engagement with your patients ensures that your business thrives while keeping patients happy and healthy under your care.