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About a year and a half ago, my wife and I downsized homes which translated into moving east about 25 minutes. After 12 months of going out of our way for doctor appointments, we started to weigh which medical professionals were worth fighting traffic for. As a result, some did not make the cut.

The new patient process at some of the offices I reached out to was either impressively smooth or extremely difficult. Let me give you the worst example. I called a highly recommended healthcare provider and requested an appointment. I was asked for my name, birthdate, insurance information. So far, so good. Basics were covered. They then asked me what time worked best for me. I replied either first thing in the morning or late afternoon. Preferably Friday. ‘7:30 am a week from Friday work?’ “Perfect” I replied. Then everything got dicey.

Two days before the appointment, I got a call from their office. “There is a problem with your insurance.” Once I heard why, I immediately knew what was going on and explained that my name and my son’s name were the same and that someone; their office, the insurance company or maybe my 20 year old, had somehow transposed some of the information. “Well, you need to call your insurance company and get this straightened out.” I politely explained that I was too busy to be calling insurance companies. The person politely informed me that this was my “problem”. I then politely cancelled the appointment. Navigating insurance and payment options is difficult for most people.

Telling potential new, or any patients what they need to do and what their problems are is rarely the best approach. Yet many times we punt issues back to them as if people seeking our services owed us anything. When it comes to patient care, help your teams make it easier to do business with you. Who knows how many new patients you will attract (or potentially drive away)?