Pediatric Medical Group of Santa Maria, located in Santa Maria, CA, has found a way to quadruple the amount of well child and well baby exams at its office.
“In the past, we always ran a recall report and had our staff call patients that were due for well exams,” Camille Gamble, practice manager, tells Medical Office Manager.
Although the process seemed to work okay, something wasn’t adding up.
“I came to realize that the staff would call them one time and leave a message and never follow up,” Gamble says. “The staff would also work very slow getting through the list.”
She decided an incentive was needed and implemented a well exam contest.
“Basically, I print out recall reports and for every 10 well exam appointments that a staff member books, she/he gets a $40 gift certificate to Walmart or Target,” Gamble explains.
At the contest closing date, each staff member has to turn in a log, documenting every appointment they scheduled and that occurred. Gamble then reviews the reports and the schedule and verifies that the appointments did occur.
“I can’t believe how well this has worked, and how much our revenue has increased,” she says. “The staff works on their reports when they are slow, and they follow up with parents to make sure to book appointments; and if the appointment was missed, they contact them to schedule another appointment.”
The incentive program has resulted in more than incentive for staff members.
“The staff loves the contest. Many of them can make anywhere from $40 to $1,000 in gift cards, which comes in handy around the holidays for them,” Gamble tells Medical Office Manager.
What’s more, the contest has had a noticeable impact on the practice’s bottom line.
“When you figure we make an average of $55 per well exam, and it is only costing us $4 per well exam, we are profiting $50 that we previously were not bringing in,” Gamble explains.
The contests have been so profitable for the practice that Gamble now runs three to four per year.
But it isn’t only about the additional income.
“I also have noticed how much parents appreciate the reminders of the well exams, especially with the adolescents,” Gamble says. “It has definitely improved our patient care as well.”
Medical Office Manager wants to send you $100. Tell us how you solved a problem, implemented a successful program – or share any idea we can use in our Reader Tips column and we’ll send you $100. Contact catherine@plainlanguagemedia.com
