The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act has been something many practices have struggled to remain compliant with since its introduction in 1996. Many practices have introduced HIPAA officers or compliancy administrators who help ensure they stay compliant with HIPPA guidelines of handling of patient protected health information.

Some of the most common examples of simple HIPAA violations include patient sign-in sheets that aren’t tear-away stickers, receptionists calling patients by both their first and last names, leaving messages on voicemails or answering machines without the patient’s express written approval, or sharing confidential patient information with non-employees (ie, consultants) without a signed business associate agreement form.

One recent violation in particular that came up was with one of our clients on the West Coast. An employee had internally created a patient recall card for dry eye patients. On the front of the recall card was the logo and website, which is fine. But the back of the card said, “It’s time for your dry eye follow-up! Bring this card in for a free dry eye test.” Yikes! Unfortunately, one of the patients who received this postcard was very HIPAA savvy and called the practice to inform them that their privacy had been compromised because now the mail carrier knew that they had dry eye. The violation is not because they were offering a free test, but because it mentioned that it was “time for the dry eye follow-up appointment,” the recall card informed the mail carrier that the patient was diagnosed with dry eye.

To ensure your practice stays HIPAA compliant, keep these simple guidelines in mind:

Practices must provide an up-to-date training program on the handling of protected health information for employees performing health plan administrative functions.

Do not leave patient paperwork visible or unattended on the check-in/check-out desk. Either cover the charts or place them in a folder or drawer.

When checking a patient in or out or while talking on the phone, do not mention their full name.

Be aware of your volume when speaking with or about a patient. Make sure others are not able to easily overhear you.

Always use a cover sheet when faxing patient protected health information.

Properly dispose of documents containing protected health information by shredding paper files

Conclusion

A little staff training goes a long way. Make sure to train one person in your practice who can be your HIPAA officer or compliancy administrator. This person can help monitor and train your staff, helping ensure they stay compliant within HIPAA guidelines of handling of patient protected health information.

Recently, I visited a practice with an interesting corporate culture based on a number of core behaviors. These core behaviors were agreed upon by the staff and implemented into how they acted on the job. Each of these behaviors pertained to a certain core value, such as quality, empathy, honesty/integrity, teamwork and recognition.

Core values and behaviors support your practice’s vision, shape your corporate culture and reflect your values; essentially, they define your company’s identity, both to your employees and your patients. These values and behaviors help employees make decisions in accordance to a set of guidelines; they also tell your patients what your practice is about. Having a set of core behaviors is a competitive advantage as well as a good tool for recruiting and retention; job seekers like to confirm that the companies they apply to hold a set of values they agree with.

Core behaviors can also help police the behavior of your employees by encouraging your employees to check each other. For instance, at the practice I visited, there were core behaviors against gossiping and abusing cell phone privileges. If an employee were to take part in such behavior, instead of facing discipline from their boss, their fellow employees would tell them something along the lines of, “Now, didn’t we all agree not to do that?” This sort of “discipline” highly encourages the right behavior in employees by making them feel obliged to uphold their agreement with their fellow employees, not just to appease their boss.

Here is an example of a solid set of core behaviors:

Quality

1. I provide prompt, compassionate care and service that exceeds expectations.

2. I project a positive image in my appearance and clean work environment.

3. I promote my office whenever possible to ensure patients will receive quality treatment when I am outside the office.

Empathy

1. I serve with a willing and flexible attitude.

2. I take responsibility for my growth and development.

3. I respect individuality, privacy and dignity of all.

4. I create a positive lasting impression every day.

Honesty/ integrity

1. I act with integrity and accountability for my actions.

2. I use company resources and materials responsibly.

3. I promote the best interests of patients.

4. I am truthful with my boss and co-workers at all times.

Teamwork

1. I communicate with clarity, courtesy and respect.

2. I create a warm and inviting environment with all co-workers.

3. I identify innovative solutions.

4. I don’t participate in gossip or negativity.

5. I don’t post or promote negative comments on social media about my job.

6. I don’t abuse cell phone privileges while on the job.

Recognition

1. I express gratitude and appreciation.

2. I write a gratitude letter to a patient every week.

3. I brag on my doctors and teammates to patients.

Core behaviors are well accepted by today’s workforce. They not only accept core direction, they thirst for it. I recommend implementing core behaviors into any practice that is trying to create a solid company culture.

Marketers know it is much easier to sell to a current customer than get a new one to walk in the door. In one recent study, businesses with a 40% level of repeat customers generated 47% more revenue than similar businesses with only a 10% level of repeat customers during a 12-month period.

This becomes all the more important when your service concerns your patient’s health.

Patient recall is therefore a doubly important element of your internal marketing campaign. Having a system in place is vital to ensuring your patient’s optimum health with regular checkups and to ensuring your patient base remains active and engaged, willing to refer you to their friends.

General recall

There are some general steps most offices are aware of to maximize patient recall. These include:

• Pre-scheduling whenever possible
• Sending recall postcards
• Maintaining accurate mailing lists for periodic general mailings

However, there are nuances and additional steps you can take to make this system work even better.

Pre-scheduling

This refers to the practice of scheduling a patient’s next regular checkup during their current one. Scheduling the next appointment as the patient is checking out is easy for the patient, sending a subtle reminder for them to return, and is easy to incorporate into the check-out routine. With an appointment already in the system, the patient will return to top of mind as the next date approaches.

Recall postcards

Many practices already send out a postcard to remind patients when a regularly scheduled checkup is due, yet this is where most of them stop. Stand out from the crowd by expanding your reminder system to include other media — send emails and SMS text messages or make a phone call. A benefit to having multiple points of contact with your patients is it becomes easier for you to update patient contact information.

Maintain accurate mailing lists

Asking patients to update their information when they come to visit is another standard practice that isn’t utilized as much as it can be. Rather than only giving patients the opportunity to update information when they come in to the office, strive to meet them where they live. Make it easy for them to text updates or update their information online. Make sure you have them update both their physical address as well as their email address.

Increase points of contact

In today’s message-saturated world, it can take as many as five to seven points of contact before your patient responds to your message, so the single postcard sent out a month ahead of appointment time is no longer sufficient. Schedule regular touch points every few weeks leading into and following any missed appointments or regularly scheduled visits, each with its own unique message appropriate for the medium used and each with its own call to action.

Automate!

There are several software packages that can help to automate many of these processes. Some of these include https://www.solutionreach.com and https://www.demandforce.com. Your own system may already have the capability to meet some if not all of these recall strategies.

By including pre-scheduling into the checkout routine and setting up automated systems to send out reminders across a variety of mediums with ease of access built in for your patients to easily contact you, you can dramatically improve patient recall.

1. Facebook check-in and free Wi-Fi

If you have tried to connect with your patients on Facebook, you probably have learned that it’s more difficult than originally thought to get them to like your page. You may also have noticed that more and more patients are asking, “What is your Wi-Fi password?” while waiting in the lobby. Now you can kill two birds with one stone using Facebook Wi-Fi. With Facebook Wi-Fi, you can set up your Wi-Fi router to have patients manually check-in to your practice via Facebook before they can connect to your free Wi-Fi. This eliminates the need to give out passwords and virtually guarantees that your practice will receive not only Facebook check-ins, but Facebook reviews as well. In addition, Facebook now automatically requests a review the day after you check into a business. Learn more about this program by visiting www.facebook.com/business/facebook-wifi.

2. Google Business reviews via the Google Maps app

As we all know, traditional marketing outlets such as newspaper, television and radio are slowly dying. More and more consumers are relying on reviews and word-of-mouth to make a decision about a place they might choose to eat, shop and receive eye care. For the most part, Google still remains the most significant search engine to receive business reviews. In the past, it has been proven difficult for patients to locate the designated place to write a review, and completing the review itself was somewhat cumbersome. This past year, Google has made it easier than ever to allow someone to do a business review. Below are the easy-to-follow steps that you can share with your patients to earn a review. Please note that Google Maps must be loaded onto their smartphone, and they must have a Gmail account.

Easy as 1-2-3!

Step 1: Open up Google Maps and search for your practice name.

Step 2: Your practice will be listed at the bottom of Google Maps. Once found, simply swipe up until you see five blank stars.

Step 3: Choose your star rating (hopefully five), write the review and submit.

Because most smartphone users are already logged into Google via Google Maps, there may be a requirement to login before or after submitting the review.

3. Optometric co-management portal

Most practices are involved in some form of co-management for cataract or refractive surgery. In the past and even nowadays, referring optometrists will use a fax machine to send patient referrals over to your practice. Now, there is nothing wrong with this tactic; however, we live in the 21st century! Recently, we have begun adding OD portals to our websites to make it easier than ever for optometrists to refer patients to our practices. This is all completed though HIPAA-compliant encryption and email services. Most optometric practices have front-office staff under the age of 30. For this generation, going online and completing a form is substantially easier and more efficient than sending a fax. The form itself is quite simplistic. It has the practice’s name, the referring doctor’s name, the practice’s phone number, the patient’s name, the patient’s phone number, the patient’s date of birth and the reason the patient is being referred. Once submitted, this form is typically sent to the optometric liaison’s HIPAA-compliant email.

Conclusion

Even with the presidential election taking place, 2016 proved to be one of the best years for several ophthalmology practices. Here’s to a hopeful continuation of this past year’s course in 2017! Happy new year!

Once you’ve created a phone system that ensures your office is presenting a positive first impression, the next step toward improving your internal marketing is to focus on converting your waiting room into a reception area because who likes to wait.

Try this experiment

Visit your practice as an outsider. As you step into the waiting area, what are your impressions? Do you feel comfortable? Do you feel welcomed? What do you hear and see? Consider the information you have available on your website or that is sent out following a phone call. Would you already be well-informed about your practice and services by now? Is there anything in your reception area that could help improve understanding?

You may have already considered or be using posters or looping educational DVDs in your waiting room area to help educate patients. While these are a good start to maximizing your practice’s internal marketing efforts, you can make a much bigger impact by thinking in terms of creating a positive experience for your patients beginning the moment they walk in the door.

Transition from dreaded doctor visit to enhanced experience

Does your clinic still look, well, clinical? There is nothing wrong with not looking like a traditional office. Many baby boomers are visiting plastic surgery offices that look like the Ritz-Carlton, and you know what, they like it! Providing simple things for free, such as Internet access, simple snacks, coffee and tea options, or bottled water, can also help enhance the experience by inviting your patients to relax.

Rather than hiring staff based on their experience in the industry, you should consider hiring staff with a greater emphasis on personality. A personable staff member will be much more likely to greet your patients with a genuine smile and involve themselves more in ensuring the patient and their family or loved ones are comfortable and cared for.

Take it to the next level

There is a practice I visited once that had the happiest patients around. On surgery day, this office would send the family home with dinner from one of the local restaurants. It could be BBQ, fried chicken or soup. Yes, I gave it away, this practice is in the south! But by providing food for the patients undergoing surgery that day, it helped take stress off of the family and the patient, and this did one huge thing for the practice — it brought in a ton of patient referrals! I’m not absolutely sure, but I think this doctor has been branded as the chicken doctor vs. state-of-the-art. But it just shows that experience and technology (given the patient has a good result) aren’t the only things that matter when it comes to patient satisfaction.

Education should be the focus

Education of your staff is paramount because they will be the primary contact between you and your patient. Every member of your staff should be aware of what to say (and what not to say) about the various services you offer. This can be accomplished by providing the staff with a simple list of frequently asked questions along with their answers. After a suitable period of time for your staff to study and understand these questions and answers, hold a staff meeting to provide your staff with the opportunity to ask for further clarification or additional information.

To help educate your patients further on the various services you offer, you can also set up digital photo frames that provide information about various procedures, success stories and previous patient testimonials.