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Beat the Clock

Increase efficiency with these tips

JAY BINKOWITZ

The clock is always ticking. From the moment a patient is welcomed to your practice to the time you have completed the exam, your efficiency — or lack thereof — will either increase or decrease the opportunities of success in your optical. The reason: When patients spend too long in the exam room, they are in a rush to leave, hindering your ability to fit them in the right products and provide exemplary service in the optical.

I have visited hundreds of practices in 35 states and concluded that the magic numbers are these: For new patients, the time from check-in to completion of your exam (not including dilation or other special tests determined during the exam) should take no longer than 40 minutes; for existing patients, 35 minutes or fewer. Every minute over crushes your chances of success in the optical. Patients would rather go to the mall and buy glasses from the big box retailers simply because of the perceived in-and-out experience and convenient hours to accommodate their lifestyles.

But, with these tips, you can increase efficiency, decrease wasted time and provide superior care to your patients.

1 Provide prefilled forms

The check-in process at your practice should be no different than the experience you get when you check in to a good hotel: pleasant and unobtrusive. Instead of handing blank forms (current insurance information, medical history, etc.) for patients to fill out upon check-in, provide prefilled forms with their information from their file, and ask them to update any changes, as needed.

To speed the process further, ask patients to complete the forms prior to their visit. This is especially helpful for new patients, as you likely have little to no information on file. When scheduling an appointment, ask for the patient’s preferred method of communication, and send the forms prior to the scheduled visit. If the patient prefers to fill them out at the time of the appointment, ask him or her to arrive 15 minutes early to ensure the process does not interfere with the schedule. This will save your patients — and you — valuable time.

2 Utilize patient time sheets

Consider using a time-tracking sheet/card that follows every patient from check-in to checkout. Each staff member who takes care of the patient should note the time he or she started and finished the interaction with the patient.

This exercise is great for maximizing time management. Tracking the time a patient spends with each staff member is the key to minimizing wasted time and the inefficiencies in your systems and procedures — not to mention making sure your team remains sensitive to patients’ time as well.

3 Preselect eyewear

Once patients are finished with their exams, they are ready to leave. So why not let them do just that? Have patients arrive 20 or 30 minutes early so they can make their eyewear selection prior to seeing the doctor. This would dramatically cut down the pressure in the clinic and make it easy for the patient to leave after his or her exam vs. hanging round another hour. Let’s get proactive here, folks!

Time’s up

The bottom line is that your patients may love you and the care you provide, but resent the time said care takes. Employ these timesaving tips to help provide your patients with stellar yet expedient service. OM

MR. BINKOWITZ IS THE PRESIDENT OF GPN, AN OPTOMETRIC CONSULTING COMPANY BASED IN HUNTINGTON, N.Y. HE HAS HAD EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE IN RETAIL OPERATIONS, MERCHANDISING AND MARKETING. E-MAIL HIM AT JAY@GATEWAYPN.COM, OR VISIT TINYURL.COM/OMCOMMENT TO COMMENT ON THIS ARTICLE.