As patients begin traveling and your team enjoys their summer adventures, it’s easy to let patient experience fall lower on your list of priorities. Instead of waiting for fall to come, take some time this summer to recreate your patient experience so your fall and winter seasons begin and end strong. This is your chance to revisit all aspects of your business to create a dental practice that stands out.
Host a Patient Appreciation Day
Hosting a Patient Appreciation Day is one of the best ways to spend a summer day at your practice. After all, your practice wouldn’t be thriving without them! Here are a few different ways to build stronger relationships with your patients through hosting an event.
Host It at Your Practice
Close early one day and offer light refreshments, small toys for the kids, and giveaways to local restaurants or activities. Partnering with these local businesses can turn the event into a mutually beneficial and low-cost option, too. If you partner with local oral surgeons or orthopedic practices, invite them as well so patients can get to know your network of practitioners.
Host It at a Local Park
Your local park can also be a great spot for a Patient Appreciation Day. Bring the same snacks and giveaways you would have at your office, but add in yard games like corn hole or even a water balloon toss.
These events are best hosted in the evenings once it’s cooled down, especially if there’s little shade.
Rethink Your Patient Onboarding Process
This summer is an opportune time to rethink your patient onboarding process. Have each team leader share their current new patient processes, and consider ways to improve upon them. For example, are new patients receiving adequate explanations for all billing and procedural information, and does your team know how to answer them correctly?
Sending follow up surveys is a go-to way to receive feedback on your team’s performance, and this is the perfect time to review responses. If there’s anything that stands out as needing improvement, take the time to address it before it becomes a larger concern.
Hold a Team Event
Your practice’s patient experience begins with your team, and a summer cookout is a great way to show your appreciation for all of their hard work. It’s also a chance for employees that don’t often work together to get to know one another. Depending on your practice’s size, you could hold this at your home or at a park.
Why not have some fun with it? Break out the leftover water balloons from your Patient Appreciation Day and have some friendly departmental competition for bragging rights. This team bonding is well worth closing the office for an evening.
While the summer months are for vacations and enjoying the summer weather, it’s also an ideal time to rethink your patient experience. Fall and winter are coming quickly, so let’s be prepared! By taking time over the summer to focus on this aspect of your dental practice, you have a chance to create a comprehensive plan to engage your patients and keep them committed to your practice.