Patient engagement is an essential business tool for scaling medi-aesthetic practices.Ā
It encourages patients to actively participate in their healthcare decisions and fosters collaboration between patients and providers. In turn, patients experience better health treatments and build open decision-making and trust with providers.Ā
Research shows that 62% of patients prefer quality engagement from their providers. Whether a hair salon, a medi-spa, a dental, wellness, or an aesthetic clinic, engaging clients to partake in their own patient journey can be tricky ā but does wonders for retention.Ā
This is where implementing smart patient engagement strategies comes in handy.
Why medi aesthetics need patient engagement ā the benefits
Efficient patient engagement delivers a line of perks for your practice:Ā
āļø Convenience & accessibility ā 71% of patients find it more convenient and simple to use a mobile device with their provider instead of having in-person visits.Ā
āļø Direct data access for patients ā 90% of patients prefer to self-manage their health via technology. They can access medical information, refill prescriptions and book appointments online at a click of a button.
āļø Catching up with competitors ā Over 70% of physicians consider patient engagement a top priority. If youāre not doing it, your competitors probably are!Ā
āļø In-demand patient support ā 1 in 3 consumers wants their provider to encourage them to be more active in their treatments, from research to inquiries.Ā
āļø Shared decision-making & transparency ā 70% of patients would choose a provider that regularly sends email or text reminders regarding their follow-up care.
āļø Boosted automation ā can reduce administrative costs by $24 billion- $48 billion a year.
Increase patient engagement in clinics: 5 leading solutions
With the right strategies in hand, clinics can efficiently scale patient engagement and:Ā
- Improve patient satisfaction and loyalty
- Enhance patient retention and reduce churn rates
- Increase revenue via repeat visits and referrals
- Improve treatment and health outcomes by using patient feedback
- Enhance reputation and image by creating branded campaigns
Here are 5 best strategies to help improve patient engagement for clinics in 2023.Ā
Social media managementĀ
Medicare took a drastic technological turn some years ago. Since then, clinics had to dip a foot into digital marketing waters and start reaching out to patients through social media channels.
That was a good transition for everyone included. Social media offers a well of patient engagement tools that work to your advantage ā from DMs, posts, and comments to live streams, (hash)tags, and ads.
A strong social media campaign helps you:
āļø Interact with and engage clients before they set foot in your practiceĀ
āļø Build mutual trust with your online community from day one
āļø Share resourceful videos, guides, and tips to reassure followers of your expertise
āļø Drive followers to make more conscious decisions regarding their healthĀ Ā Ā Ā
āļø Create targetted ads to boost revenue, leads, and client satisfactionĀ
Send direct mails + emails
Newsletters have made a marketing comeback and clinics can put them to great use.
A Mail Chimp survey showed that the open rate for emails in the healthcare market is 21.48%. This makes newsletters a top channel for providers to interact with patients.
You can reach out to clients through direct mail or weekly scheduled email. Quality content, personalized messages, special offers, and the latest treatment news help keep patients updated, whilst giving potential clients a detailed scope of your services.
Emails remind patients that you care for them and have their best interests at heart. Use a newsletter to send patients birthday reminders, personalized tags, as well as share promos and discount offers you have in store.
Educational content that speaks to patients
Providing valuable patient education is a great strategy for boosting their engagement.
Through quality education, patients can actively update their knowledge, participate in their own health journey and build long-term collaboration with their providers.Ā
Social media is a great playfield for educational content, but websites are even better.
Expand your websiteās educational content and engage patients by creating:
- Educational blogs and guidesĀ
- Special service descriptions and examples
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Precare and aftercare contentĀ
- Content on specific, new, or designated services or treatments
- On-site patient surveys and quizzesĀ
These help you connect with patients better, answer their common questions, and give them on-the-spot knowledge that benefits their wellness.
Monitor patients remotely
Doing regular remote check-ins with patients can enhance patient activation.Ā
Some patients will prefer not to visit their clinic in person. So, checking on a patientās health status via remote portals is a convenient alternative.Ā
Telemedicine has become a huge trend, with 63% of patients reporting they are more comfortable with telehealth visits. This distant, yet personalized approach allows patients to nurture a strong relationship with their providers, and avoid travel costs and at-clinic waiting.Ā
Remote treatments also give practitioners online access to the patientās Client Card. From there, you can access and review treatment notes from previous patient sessions without wasting time on in-person appointments or back-and-forth communication.
Trust clinical notes
Treatment notes help streamline documentation and ensure treatment efficiency.Ā
Use them to:Ā
- Create personalized guidelines for patients, like precare or aftercareĀ
- Track patient progress by attaching progress photos to your notesĀ
- Improve communication among providers, as well as with patientsĀ
- Enable patients to actively participate and track their journey progress
- Instruct or remind patients about their next treatment steps
Automated treatment improves patient compliance, engagement, and satisfaction.
For clinics, it increases workflow efficiency, especially when treating multiple patients.Ā
Need an extra solution for patients tracking their health digitally?Ā
Collect patient data from wearables
Data privacy can be a serious concern for patients. The good news is, patients are more than happy to provide data to the doctors they trust and engage with. In fact, 60% of people would share the data collected on their wearables ā fitness trackers, blood pressure monitors, sleep trackers, etc. ā with their doctors if it would help their health.
Engagement-wise, sourcing patient data from wearables allows GPs and physicians to:
- Create personalized treatment plans for patientsĀ
- Do real-time patient monitoring
- Provide real-time patient feedback
- Educate patients on taking healthy actions
How Pabauās software helps your clinic engage patients
Going about patient management the old-school way will cost your clinic time and effort. But adding extra automated social media software will cost you money and efficiency.Ā
To avoid overspending and poor patient management, Pabau has devised an all-in-one practice management software. Reach out to patients in time, address their feedback on the spot, and monitor their journey at every stage ā all from the same system.
Pabauās patient engagement featuresĀ
šĀ Automated reminders
Engage with patients before, during, and after treatment by sending them automated SMS or email alerts.
Reminders keep your schedule fuller, boost efficiency and revenue, as well as appointment utilization.
Plus, 70% of patients would rather go for a provider that offers follow-up care.
š» Telehealth sessions
Ā 91% of patients say that telemedicine would help them show up for appointments and manage prescriptions and refills better.
Convenient access to healthcare, more effective management, and improved patient outcomes are the pillars of patient engagement.Ā
š A marketing toolkitĀ
Engaging patients starts with quality marketing. With Pabau, you can design, schedule, and send marketing campaigns on the spot, with the help of PabauAI.
Design and send social media, newsletter and/or SMS campaigns, and create vouchers, discounts, and loyalty points for patients.
š Patient data securityĀ
75% of people are worried about how well their health data is protected. So, a great way to engage patients here is through reassurance.
Namely, you can manage permissions and access to sensitive patient data, including before-after photos and consent forms.
Keeping all data securely in one place builds trust with patients and puts them at ease regarding your quality of security.Ā
š Automated feedback, surveys and reviews
Creating patient surveys and tracking reviews can level up your engagement efforts. Spending 10 minutes a week addressing public patient feedback will reduce negative review impact by up to 70%.
Pabau also lets clinics collect reports of completed surveys, reviews, and feedback.
š Client portal & client card
Pabau’s Connect Portal enables clients to conveniently monitor appointments, payments, and other account details online.Ā
In their Client Card, patients can access their EMRs ā check payments, products, services, invoices, forms, etc. They can also choose preferred marketing and contact channels, and track previous visits.
The client portal is great for shared decision-making with patients. Share before-after photos and give patients quick access to their test results, instead of having them book an appointment for it.Ā
š Detailed treatment notesĀ
Patients can easily find specific treatment notes their provider has created.
Treatment notes can include before-after photos, treatment guidelines, diagnoses, specific medication details, treatment plans, precare or aftercare details, progress notes, and more.
Notes can be sent via email/SMS, offering full disclosure of the patient’s journey and making patients feel cared for.Ā
āļøElevate patient engagement for your clinic with Pabau
Take your clinic’s patient engagement efforts to a new level with Pabauās tailored CRM solutions. Our all-in-one software revolutionizes patient engagement for practice owners, managers, and busy-bree marketers.Ā
From optimizing your clinic’s email campaigns to automating surveys and reviews and offering newsletter managers, we help your clinic grow, engage, and retain clients in the long run!
Start using our automated strategies today!Ā
