| The business of physical therapy, like any other | | | | surveys can also provide demographic data such |
| business, requires information input in order to | | | | as address/location, gender, age, occupation, etc |
| develop, grow, expand and be successful and the | | | | that can aid in analyzing marketing strategies, |
| best way to gather this information is by | | | | allowing you to recognize any trends or patterns |
| conducting patient surveys. Direct data from | | | | pertaining to ailments or promoting clinic services |
| patients gives the best kind of criticism because | | | | that will help you address them. |
| they are your target market already and can give | | | | Tracking survey data can be pretty interesting |
| you specifics as to what to improve or what to | | | | especially when you see trends or patterns |
| do away with. | | | | emerging. This kind of information can help you |
| Turn to surveys for the following aspects of your | | | | save thousands of dollars in overhead or increase |
| practice: setting levels of service quality that your | | | | your profit margin. For instance, if you notice that |
| clinic will stand by, evaluation of operational | | | | patients are going to you from word-of-mouth |
| systems and procedures for smoother | | | | advertising instead of from the yellow pages, then |
| management, and ways to advertise the clinic's | | | | maybe you can decrease your budget for the |
| services for increased patient traffic. | | | | yellow pages and put it towards professional |
| In addition, surveys can give you valuable | | | | newsletters instead via direct marketing efforts. |
| information with regards to the details of | | | | Suffice it to say that patient surveys are |
| day-to-day operations like facility concerns - | | | | essential to a flourishing practice. Ask the right |
| cleanliness, location, equipment inefficiencies or | | | | questions and put those answers into practice. |
| upgrades, staff efficiency, the therapies offered | | | | Integrate those solutions that you asked for from |
| and the convenience or availability of parking | | | | your patients and you will see patient satisfaction |
| spots. This type of information clues you into | | | | grow in addition to your patient load. This is a |
| your patients' state of satisfaction with your | | | | reliable and candid approach to find out what your |
| products, services, and even bedside manner! | | | | patients think of you and your practice. Get them |
| Then upon receipt of survey results, you have to | | | | done on a regular basis in anonymity and stay in |
| maintain objectivity. The less biases you have, the | | | | touch with your audience. |
| better you can improve your facility to the | | | | Be meticulous with handling your physical therapy |
| standards that your patients ask of you. So | | | | practice. Take the results from your patients' |
| positive or negative criticisms should be taken | | | | surveys seriously. Make the responses to these |
| with the patients' point of view in mind and acted | | | | surveys work for you and to your advantage by |
| upon accordingly and not taken personally. | | | | taking appropriate action. And when you do, you |
| Physical therapy is a service-oriented business so | | | | will see your practice thrive, your bottom line |
| daily monitoring of its offerings' quality should be | | | | improve and your patients satisfied and happy. |
| done to maintain standards. The details of the | | | | |