2007 was a strong year for new patient refractive calls. At that time, simple messages like “call for your free DVD” or “call now to schedule a free consultation” were working. Phones were ringing and patients were ready to book appointments. All you needed to do was let them know that you were available to help them.
May 2008, the FDA 10 year report was released. Many practices felt that this was the turning point where patient interest started to decline. Ironically, at the same time, we had other major economic changes that had a much bigger affect than the FDA report. The housing and credit bubble burst. The affects were felt throughout the financial system and ultimately infected the entire economy. Gas prices soared. Discretionary funds dried up, and those with cash in the bank were keeping it in their pockets. The slowest call volume our center experienced for new patients interested in elective surgery occurred between May 2008 and September 2008.
In October 2008, gas prices started to ease up. The price per gallon dropped from almost $5 to $3. At the same time, the general population grew tired of the negative press of the economy. As the price of fuel went down, the number of calls started to increase again. Call volume for October and November increased 40% over previous months. Call volume remained at this higher level throughout the Spring of 2009. In April 2009, the stock market crashed. Call volume was hit again. The lowest call volume for our collective group was experienced in May 2009. Since the market was already depressed, we didn’t see the normal fall-off of call volume that we usually experience in the summer months.
The highest call volume we encountered in 2009 occurred during the months of September through December. In December alone, calls were 29% higher than in January 2009. Why the difference? Some practices started to market themselves again. I’ve heard so many practices complain about their refractive patient volume being down. Have these patients gone away? No. They may have merely gone away from that particular provider. Chances are, they went elsewhere!
Practices need to understand that the desire to make immediate cuts in their budgets and improve the bottom line comes at a cost. They may not feel the affects today, but they will definitely feel it in a few months. John DiJulius stated it perfectly in a recent newsletter. He said “we live in an “instant” society that demands immediate results. Marketing, sales promotion and cutting expenses provide immediate results that executives can see. However, many times those things do not have a lasting positive business impact”.
Where are we going in 2010? The call volume numbers are strong so far this January, more so for those practices who are advertising. There are plenty of patients willing to pay for quality services. Practices who are willing to take their destiny into their own hands and start reaching out to find patients through advertising efforts will do so. The marketing messages need to have a strong call to action. The days of “awareness” ads bringing in patients are over. Additionally, practices need to spend more time and resources in the area of customer service and phones. The average practice loses up to 30% of potential revenue due to poorly answered phone calls, automated systems and voicemail answering. If you are going to spend ANY money at all, you better make sure that the phones are being answered, and answered properly.
Food for thought…with cuts in reimbursement for managed care patients, many practices are scrambling to find ways to make up what they are losing. While managed care patients are the bread and butter for many practices, it’s the elective patient that is much more profitable, and in most cases, requires a lot less work.
Bill Mercier, graduate of Rutgers University is the founder, President, and CEO at OptiCall Inc. Bill’s experience working for a mobile laser company through the late 90’s and the early part of 2000 gave him the inspiration to create systems that help the patient communication process. With the optimal patient customer experience in mind, OptiCall, Inc was founded
For over 8 years, OptiCall has been providing telephone support to refractive practices across the US, all with the goal of enhancing the patient experience. Our practices range from the single proprietor offering LASIK as an option for their patients to the “refractive only” center taking hundreds of new patient calls per month. Regardless of the circumstance, our goal is to provide outstanding customer service, schedule consultations, and capture leads for the practices we service.
TJ McCue from All Business.com, a Dunn & Bradstreet company, recently posted an article about Local Eye Site. The LES team is very pleased with TJ’s assessment of our site and value proposition. All Business.com is one of the leading and most visited business websites in the world, so the LES team is excited and grateful for the exposure. Read the Local Eye Site article on All Business.com.
Does your eye care practice embrace a “sales” or a “marketing” recruiting style?
Unfortunately, traditional eye care recruiting has embraced a “sales” model. Classifieds or national job boards give you 30-60 days, or a weekend in the case of the classifieds, to introduce your practice to the pool of (mostly unqualified) candidates. This model calls for practices to wait until the need is acute, then scramble to find a handful of qualified candidates, and “sell” them on why they should come to work for you. The result is wasted time (sifting through too many unqualified candidates), less likelihood of finding the best candidate, and stress on the organization because of the acute need.
Local Eye Site makes a recruitment “marketing” model affordable, something large organizations invest tens or hundreds of thousands in annually. The model we have created consistently markets your practice as an employer of choice within a community of qualified eye care professionals and systematically builds your brand as a desirable career destination. The resulting candidate pipeline will prepare the practice for this inevitable employee turnover.
The LES model plays off of what we already know…that word of mouth is the most effective recruiting tool. We currently are conducting a survey about 2010 employment expectations at Local Eye Site http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WRB6XPM
So, far 47 eye care practices have completed the survey. 49% of these practices say they plan to hire in 2010, and 68% say that word of mouth has been their most effective recruiting tool. We are suggesting that word of mouth is simply powerful marketing, so if you want to recruit effectively, then you must “market” your practice as an employer of choice year-round, not occasionally in reaction to vacated positions.
Lastly, the reality is that this situation (competing for the limited supply of talented of eye care professionals) is going to become significantly more difficult over the coming years as the boomers continue to age/retire (see our webinar, “Winning the War for Talent in 2010″ http://localeyesite.com/about/winning-the-war-for-talent-in-2010
So, we are urging practices to embrace a new model now in preparation for this coming crisis.
Ophthalmology recruitment pundits (like us at Local Eye Site) have been clamoring for quite some time about the looming labor crisis. Especially in the eye care business, it stands to reason that as the baby boom generation ages, the need for eye care professionals will substantially grow against a limited supply. But rather than address this daunting crevasse, I’d like to draw attention to a topic a little more manageable…New Year’s Resolutions. As you break for the holidays, it’s important to be prepared for what may be awaiting your return in January. You may be surprised.
Manpower Inc’s talent and career management experts, Right Management, predicted last month that employee turnover is expected to rise in the new year as a new survey shows that many workers are unhappy with their present jobs. 60% of employees intend to leave for another job/career and an additional one-in-four are networking and updating their resumes now. http://www.right.com/news-and-events/press-releases/item1954.aspx
Now in it’s fifth year, the 2009 Employment Dynamics and Growth Expectations (EDGE) Report, a collaborative effort between CareerBuilder and Robert Half International, states that 45% of employees plan to make a change when the economy recovers. Read the report here.
The economy is significantly improving according to an article in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB126135497832099455.html). While this is certainly good news for your practice’s financial health consider the impact and very real possibility that your employees will have other options due to the improved employment landscape. Another challenge eye care practices are likely to face is whether you will be ready when your practice elects to add staff due to pent-up demand in an improving economy. Will other practices and hospitals beat you to the punch? The following quote is from the article I link to above: “The economy is primed for a stronger finish to 2009 than most forecasters and business executives expected just a few months ago, prompting tempered optimism that employers may resume hiring early in the next year.” Great news…right?
So the question is, how many of your employees’ New Year’s Resolutions include the line item, “Get a new job?” The answer is probably, “more than you think.” Are you pipelining candidates now preparing for this inevitable New Year’s hangover?
Over the course of the last four months during my conversations with Brad and the other partners at Local Eye Site about potentially joining them as a full time partner, I became increasingly skeptical. Not about the business model, not about the strength and experience of the leadership team, and not about the impressive rate of growth the business had enjoyed in its brief lifetime. I just wasn’t buying this “sense of community” Brad was passionately telling me he was building.
I mean, seriously Brad? Wink, wink. You mean a job board, right? Aren’t you saying that the term “Community” is the marketing jargon you’re using? Knowing the job board business, my interpretation of an online community is similar to a flea market. People come to buy stuff (find candidates) and people come to sell stuff (get a job). When the transaction is complete, that’s it. If hanging around the flea market before and after the buying and selling takes place is your idea of a “community,” well…I wasn’t so sure.
I was still all ears though because while I was employed at one of the major job boards, the one item I was sure about was the consistent erosion of market share in the US we saw as a result of niche job boards entering the fray; that a major issue had become the recruiters’ bandwidth as they sifted through hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of unqualified resumes to find the qualified. According to compete.com, Careerbuilder had 15 million unique visitors in October and Monster had 41 million! And that’s just their core US sites - not including the multitude of network sites they own and to which they push postings. That traffic may be super for Wal-Mart or Home Depot, but think about maelstrom that creates for the office administrator of an eye care practice with twenty employees needing to hire two Ophthalmic Techs and a Contact Lens Tech.
So back to community. You can see I bought into the business model, but the community idea? Fortunate to have family in the Ophthalmology field, I sought their counsel. “Different” “Needed” “Eileen is hilarious” and “It’s about time” were some of the responses I received. Brad then turned me on to the idea exchange, the search-for-candidates functionality, the community contributors featured in LES blogs and newsletters as well as the survey results on cataract surgery and post-op kits published on the site. Here’s a question we received on the site just this morning: “Can you tell me the parameters for re-sterilizing phaco tips and knives?” And in speaking with the administrator of a Pennsylvania practice just yesterday, we were reminded just how expensive and limiting the local newspapers and their online outlets are as practices pipeline candidates in advance of the expected increase in turnover seen every January, not to mention the labor shortage of allied healthcare workers.
So, with all that said, I have drunk the Kool-Aid. So much so, that I’ve had new business cards printed for our Founder, Brad McCorkle, with his new title: Community Organizer.
Have you heard about the eye care practice in New York with the bizarre recruiting philosophy?Well, it seems that the administrator at this practice became so frustrated with trying to recruit a new doc and fill an immediate need for a technician for their practice, that she took a rather questionable step.
She hired several temps to spend 30 days in Times Square, Grand Central Station and walking the streets in front of NY unemployment offices wearing a sign, passing out flyers and shouting from a bull horn, “Our eye care practice is hiring!!!It’s a really terrific place to work, and we pay well, so if you are an experienced Technician or an Ophthalmologist, please call or fax your resume to XXX-XXX-XXXX.”
So, how do you think that worked out for them?You guessed it-not so well.Did the practice get candidates?You betcha.In fact, the practice experienced a deluge of calls and faxes from thousands of job-seeking individuals from all over the country actually.The fire-storm of activity was a huge distraction for the administrator.She found herself spending long hours after clinic, pouring through resumes, phone messages and faxes trying to find even a hand full of qualified candidates.
When asked about her unusual recruiting strategy, the administrator replied,” Hey, it’s hard to find good people, especially in a niche industry like eye care, so I thought we better cast a wide net in order to improve our odds.What better place than the unemployment offices or Times Square?That’s where you’ll find lots of people looking for jobs.I expected it to be distracting, but I figured no pain, no gain.”
The administrator did eventually hire an experienced Technician that picked up one of the flyers in Times Square.Unfortunately, that person only lasted about 60 days with the practice, and now the administrator is back to the drawing board.“Now I don’t know what to do.Ultimately my strategy worked, but boy was it painful, and expensive.I just don’t think I can go through that again.”
Eye Care’s loveable mascot Eileen is back. In episode 3 of Local Eye Site’s Eileen the Eye Care Professional Extraordinaire, Eileen and the team welcome a new doctor to the Neighborhood Eye Care Center. The NECC’s doctors are serious healthcare professionals, but they have some fun in store for the new doctor.
Is it possible to be a serious healthcare provider, and bring a sense of humor to your work? You tell us.
Local Eye Site recently had the opportunity to interview Carla Mack, O.D., M.B.A., FAAO. Dr. Mack is the Director of Global Medical Affairs Vision Care for Bausch & Lomb (B&L). We discussed B&L’s newest venture, the Center for Patient Insights (CPI).
“The main goal of CPI is to deliver news and patient insight that can help any eye care practitioner better understand their patient, and ultimately provide better vision care for them,” said Dr. Mack. B&L is trying to present something new and different within the industry. CPI is meant to be a reliable, credible resource that provides easily accessible information.
As eye care professionals, we assume that practitioners know and understand their patients’ concerns when it comes to choosing contact lenses. However, it never hurts for practitioners to receive patient feedback from a different perspective. Dr. Mack mentioned that CPI has commissioned a number of patient surveys in order to gauge patient’s understanding of current knowledge and products that exist on the market. Dr. Mack stresses the information is unbiased. Not all of CPI’s content is generated by B&L. “Some of the patient insights are commissioned by B&L and some of it comes from peer review journal articles and other recognized sources such as HPR and Gallup; The information is not meant to be geared towards B&L as product promotion. For example, we just announced results from a 200-person survey showing that 80% of soft toric lens wearers in the U.S. have experienced a rotational recovery issue, such as blurred or fluctuating vision that can happen during normal life activities like lens insertion or rubbing of the eyes. This high statistic demonstrates that, we, as an industry of eye care professionals, must be sure to address rotational recovery with patients and provide soft toric lens options that rapidly return to their resting position.”
At the Center for Patient Insights AOA Launch Event this past June, there was a panel discussion in which Dr. Mack participated. She addressed the question of patient motivation to wear daily disposable contact lenses.It was clear, based on a real-time audience survey, the audience of practitioners believed that convenience is a factor when patients choose their lenses. Dr. Mack commented, “I think convenience is one aspect that appeals to patients but different practitioners have different ways of discussing and recommending lens options; It really depends on where the value lies for the patients. Although convenience is important, the health benefits of a daily disposable lens is another important factor.” Dr. Mack had a similar answer when asked about the cost-effectiveness of lenses. Essentially she said it comes down to value and what your patients look for in a lens. “If their needs are met, they’ve picked the right lens, regardless of price.”
CPI is for optometrists, opticians, general staff and ophthalmologists, “If you have contact lens patients, it is our intent that you will find some information that can be applied to your practice.” The website is not the only tool B&L plans to use to push out valued information. “It’s not so much about promoting the website; It’s about making sure the information is distributed through a number of channels that are accessible to eye care professionals,” Dr. Mack added. Through newsletters, practitioner events and Patient Points, Bausch & Lomb and Center for Patient Insights, hope to partner with eye care practitioners to provide timely patient insights that can help practices achieve great patient outcomes, satisfaction, and vision health.
Joseph Farina is a Local Eye Site “Community Contributor.” Joseph has a B.S.B.A. in Business Management, an A.A.S. in Ophthalmic Science and Technology, and over 20 years of ophthalmicoperations management experience, holding a vice president position for three different multi-state ophthalmic companies. Most recently, he served as president of a consulting company that specializes in services to the eye care professional.
Joseph authored today’s Local Eye Site blog entry, “How is Your Culture Affecting Your Bottom Line?” We hope you enjoy it, and are able to take away some helpful information for managing your eye care practice.
What does the culture at your company say about what it values most? Does your culture produce the type of results you want or need? A culture is simply the way people think and act, and it does produce results. Every practice or organization has a culture, no matter its size. The culture produces the results and the results reinforce the culture.
Is your culture one of patient service, financial performance, employee support, etc.? Think about 3M and its product development, or Proctor and Gamble and its strong marketing culture. For me most recently, it was patient service. With so much competition in eye care, I knew it was the best area in which to focus full efforts in order to produce long term results.
One example that practices and companies use in culture development are employee promotions. Leaders and employees sometimes take them too lightly, but they are a very powerful tool. They affect the persons promoted as well as everyone else around them. Employees share both positive and negative experiences. Think about it. Do the promoted individuals provide a value imprint? They should, because everything these individuals do or say, everywhere they go, leave a valuable impression on everyone else.
Whatever the size of the organization, leaders create and reinforce the culture. An effective culture requires a good leader. This might be the doctor, supervisor, director, manager, or technician. The leader must provide open, honest, and respectful communication; this will supply valuable information for effective cultural development. Is finger-pointing, confusion, denial, and/or procrastination what you are hearing from your culture? Are members saying things like “I did not know that was the number we were trying to achieve? That is not my responsibility. They gave me bad reports. I did not know I got paid to do that also. Did you actually think I could exceed that number? Things will get better. Didn’t you receive that memo?” If this is what you are hearing, your culture is not producing a culture of full performance. Manage your culture or it will manage you.
The greatest management task is always directing people to produce the desired result. To accomplish this, the leader must drive the experiences. Experiences should be 1) realistic, 2) recognizable, 3) results driven, and 4) time sensitive. They must take into consideration the abilities of all employees at all levels of the organization. Take “baby steps” to construct the change you want, and then multiple “baby steps” to produce long term results. Recognizable experiences illustrate that things are different from before. “This is how we do things now.” Results driven experiences are action-oriented. Employees must work from their minds and hearts to take ownership. With more ownership comes focus and change from their empowerment. Time sensitive experiences are actions which individuals can do today, this week, or this month. They are NOT just a “to-do list”. They are clear actions that contribute to the practice or company that all are committed to achieve. Using these concepts, I produced a major culture shift at an eye care organization. “Baby steps” and open communication provided opportunities for employees to take ownership and pride in the work that was accomplished. All issues were time sensitive, and employees believed the results were realistic achievable. Everyone within the organization was involved, and things were done differently than before. This process produced record results with a $2.8M revenue increase, a 62% increase in laboratory productivity, and a 30% improvement in patient/customer service.
In this trying economy, your culture is the single most important component to achieving results through all the employees successfully. Ask yourself these questions:
1. Do we have a business plan, and does everyone understand it?
2. Is everyone committed to achieving it?
3. Does everyone have an opportunity to participate in goal setting?
4. Is the billing/receivables department operating at a high performance level?
5. Are the right dollar amounts being spent in external/internal marketing?
6. Are operational reports prepared properly?
7. Are phones being handled at peak performance?
8. What are our capture rates?
9. Did we get that new appointment?
10. Did we follow up with the patient on their insurance?
11. Was the patient notified of a change in surgery?
12. Was the patient notified of a new date of delivery?
The lists of questions to ask yourself are endless. All answers to these questions come back to culture development. The size of the organization does not matter. The leader sets the expectations by example and communication. Experiences change and reinforce the culture, and the culture produces the results. If you apply these principles in all departments, you will be able to construct or realign the culture you desire, even in this difficult economy.
Recently, Local Eye Site conducted an online survey of eye care professionals looking for feedback on what regimen of drops are being used before, day-of and after cataract surgery. The response from the Local Eye Site community was terrific! We pulled the results into the power point presentation below. Enjoy! Please let us know if there are additional surveys that you would like to see in the future. Thank you.
Ophthalmology recruitment pundits (like us at