How to Retain Patient Bookings

Great – everything is progressing nicely so I’ll see you next week.

Next week comes and the appointment is missing.

You think they’ve just forgotten to book in.

They’ll probably call soon.

Right?

Right…?

No. They’ll never call. You won’t see them again for a very long time. Or maybe ever.

So what happened?

In every service field, not just physiotherapy, a critical component of success is patient retention.

But isn’t that unethical? To try to retain patients?

Look, it can be. Especially if you’re asking them to come back with a faulty rationale and the intention to milk their private healthcare.

But if someone has an ankle injury and most ankles do best with 6 treatment sessions over 6-8 weeks – then six should be the goal.

So yes,

Your patients should be coming back to a certain extent to progress their rehab.

Just like how individuals who receive personal training should be seeing their trainer 2-3x/week if they want to reach their goals.

So now that you understand retention is important – let’s explore how you can retain your patients. If you’d like to watch the video version, you can view that down below.

Why they Cancel Reason #1 – They’re now Pain Free

Congratulations! You’ve done such a great job, your patient is pain free and they don’t need to ever see you again.

That’s what most patients think, and mostly why they’ll stop coming back.

But most patients will actually be pain free with or without your intervention. I’m sorry if that’s hard to hear, but it’s true.

The good news is pain-free does not equate to problem-free.

As you would know as a physiotherapist – a pain-free ankle does can still be lax, weak and lacking proprioception… all factors that will predispose them to re-strain.

Great rehab is when their ankle is the same, if not stronger than the other side.

But how do we get the patient to see this?

You’ve got to set the tone from the first consultation.

If you aren’t addressing it already, you need to tell them that they’ll be pain-free within 3-4 sessions.

And that’s when true rehab begins. Because that’s when you can start challenging the injured body part to come back stronger.

My favourite analogy to get the message across is this:

‘It’s like going to the gym. The first few times you’re just learning the exercises. But you only start seeing results when you start challenging yourself. That’s the same as rehab.’

Make sure you talk about this from the very first session, so they know pain-free is the beginning of the next phase of rehab.

Why the Cancel #2 – They didn’t actually buy into your Treatment

Sorry – I know this is harsh but you probably just didn’t do a very good job.

But Phil, I gave them a great treatment.

I’m sure you did – in your mind. But was that all you did?

Do you think your patient left the consultation feeling understood?

Do you think they left with a clear picture of their rehab?

Do you think they left with a great experience?

If you weren’t able to answer this confidently, that’s part of the reason why you struggle to rebook.

Whether patients are even aware of it, no one objects to a great experience. They might say ‘I go to physio to get rehab.’

But their experience of the rehab is what they’ll remember.

So what do you do about it?

For one, reset your idea of what an initial consultation is. You’re not there to just provide treatment.

You are there to give them a great experience. You need to give tremendous amounts of value upfront.

Make an impact on their problem.

Show them the way forward.

Make them feel like they’re in good hands.

You have to give every patient the best physiotherapy experience ever.

Oh before we get to mistake #3, if you’re interested in refining your sales skills either through one on one coaching or want this to be taught to your team, we can hop on a free 20 minute strategy call to see what solution suits you best. Just click on this link here.

Why the Cancel #3 – Shit Happens

Yep. This is as simple as it gets sometimes.

Maybe it’s a family member who died.

Maybe it’s a lost dog.

Maybe they lost their job.

When this happens, you need to make a decision based off the long-term consequences of your business. And you are in the business of care.

Option 1: Leave them be, never to see them again.

Option 2: Follow up, find out the reason for their no-show, and then find a way to service them.

Which one achieves both objectives?

Yes, option 2.

There are many times in my career where I’ve simply inquired about their no-show or cancellation, to find out that somethings happened.

From there, I give them what is professionally accurate on the phone, and leave them the option to rebook should they so choose.

Most times, the patient will thank you and if they don’t book with you then…

They’ll rebook with you for another problem later on.

You might think this is a bad strategy because ‘you don’t get paid’ for this advice.

And you’re right, if you think short term.

But in the long term, which one is likely to facilitate a relationship that has a returning customer?

Exactly.

Until next time,
Phil