CLINICAL

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Doctor Diversity

Differences in clinical acumen, age and interests are practice drivers

JEFFRY D. GERSON, O.D., F.A.A.O.

For those of us who practice in multi-doctor offices, we may agree that opposites attract. By this I mean that practices that employ doctors who have different clinical areas of interest, ages, as well as outside interests and hobbies, attract and retain different subsets of patients, enabling them to prosper.

Clinical matchmaking

For example, if one doctor in the practice enjoys and excels at taking care of children, a good match may be a doctor who likes and exceeds at managing elderly patients or those with pathology. After all, the end result is two different patient populations, and, keep in mind that the first will grow into the second.

Along these lines, while we, as optometrists, think of doctor ages from a perspective of retirement planning, we must also realize that doctors of different ages attract patients of different ages.

Specifically, some patients want a doctor who has a great deal of experience in a particular area, such as age-related eye disease, as they equate years of practice with unparalleled clinical prowess.

On the other hand, some patients desire a young doctor, as they relate youth to being “tech savvy” and/or in tune with new treatment modalities. Offer both types of doctors, and you attract both types of patients.

Interests as intermediary

Diversity in doctors goes far beyond clinical perspective and age, though. Keep in mind that each of us has different interests and passions outside the office as well. And these interests and/or hobbies expose us to different people who become potential patients.

For example, if you are active in your church, other members of your congregation will immediately think of you should they, a family member or friend require eye care. Also, if you play on a community sports team, those team members will see you themselves, or refer you to friends and family. The reason: Shared interests and/or hobbies create immediate trust, which is an essential component to the doctor-patient relationship.

In addition, our outside interests can be used inside the practice to make it flourish. For example, it is a real advantage to a practice when one of the O.D.s can function as “CFO” and truly watch and manage the finances. Where a complex spreadsheet showing metrics of efficiency and production may be confusing to some, to others it is fun to produce and manage.

Practice principles

As long as the over-riding principles of those in a practice align, diversity in doctors should be celebrated and embraced. OM

DR. GERSON PRACTICES AT GRIN EYECARE IN OLATHE, KAN., A FULL-SCOPE COMBINED O.D./M.D. PRACTICE. E-MAIL HIM AT JGERSON@HOTMAIL.COM. TO COMMENT ON THIS ARTICLE E-MAIL OPTOMETRICMANAGEMENT@GMAIL.COM.