Whether you have a therapy, dental, chiropractic, optometry, or other healthcare practice, the past six months have required you to harness all of your skills to adapt to rapid change.
From the call to shut down practices to a gradual reopening to our current state of learning to function in the “new normal,” we can all appreciate the need for best practices that we can rely on during the pandemic.
One of the best ways to develop these new practices is to listen to colleagues and discover what’s working for them.
Last month we presented the success story of Dr. Neil Gajjar, a dentist in Mississauga, Ontario.
This month we’re presenting the success story of Dr. Kevin L. Gee, an optometrist in Missouri City, Texas.
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After graduating from optometry school, Dr. Gee was appointed Assistant Clinical Professor of Surgery at the Texas A&M College of Medicine and Senior Staff Physician at Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple, Texas. In 2010, he was honored by the American Optometric Association with the appointment to the Meetings Center Executive Committee, and he served in that capacity until 2017. Dr. Gee served as President of the Texas Optometric Association in 2013 and served as Consulting Past President in 2015. In 2011 Dr. Gee completed and successfully passed the American Board of Optometry Board Certification examination and now is distinguished as a Diplomate of the American Board of Optometry. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and was a former board member of the local optometric society. |
We shut down our practice in March, except for emergency cases. During this time, it was important that our patients felt they were still connected with us. I knew communication would be key! We used an automated response on our phones to inform them that our practice was closed, and messages were rerouted to my Hushmail inbox, so I was always apprised of their needs and could respond promptly. This was a confusing time for everyone, and we figured that reliable communication would be an important component in helping our patients feel safe.
Because the future was uncertain, we sent out a newsletter encouraging our contact lens wearers to contact me if they had less than a three month supply. Within 18 hours, we filled 45 orders! Rebates, receipts, other documents were easily sent securely back and forth with Hushmail.
We reopened on May 20 after two days of staff orientation and deep office cleaning. We waited until clear CDC guidelines for reopening were published, set to work following those, and added some of our own.
Here are some of the precautionary measures we put in place:
We also used two web forms to safely welcome patients for their appointments:
This form allows patients to acknowledge that they haven’t traveled to a hotspot and haven’t come in contact with anyone who is COVID-19 positive. This form is updated as guidelines concerning COVID-19 change.
This form is modeled on the informed consent form Dr. Gee uses in his practice. If you would like to use this form, let Hushmail know, and we’ll be happy to duplicate it in your account, subject to the number of forms allowed on your plan.
This form helps us ensure that our patients are ready for their appointment, informing them of the need for a mask (and of the opportunity to purchase one), the necessity to arrive alone (minors may bring one parent), and acquiring their consent to have their temperature checked when they come in the door. This form, coupled with a phone interview, allows us to get all of the “paperwork” out of the way upfront so when a patient arrives, they are escorted right in to their appointment.
This form is modeled on the appointment checklist Dr. Gee uses in his practice. If you would like to use this form, let Hushmail know, and we’ll be happy to duplicate it in your account, subject to the number of forms allowed on your plan.
For more information about how we reopened and the technology and procedures we’re using, visit us on our Facebook page @GeeEyeCare.
One of the biggest challenges in the weeks and months ahead will be adjusting our procedures as the situation changes. For example, it’s important that our web forms are easy to edit because hotspots and other recommendations change. If cases begin to surge, we will want to have our patients complete the checklist the day before, or even the day of, the appointment.
It’s always important when managing a practice to stay abreast of industry changes, but now those changes come quickly and are difficult to foresee. It’s necessary to do our best to look ahead and put plans in place in case x, y, or z occurs, but also to be ready to handle the unpredictable.
Change can be good! I’ve heard from numerous colleagues that the pandemic has forced them to become more efficient than ever. For us, it was implementing phone interviews.
My team conducts the patient history over the phone prior to each patients’ visit. They are recorded, and I listen to them. Just when we thought we couldn’t get any more efficient, we are learning better ways.
I’ve learned a lot in the last three months. If anyone were to ask me what they could do to manage their practice in this unprecedented time, I would tell them three things:
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From the call to shut down practices to a gradual reopening to our current state of learning to function in the “new normal,” we can all appreciate the need for best practices that we can rely on during the pandemic. One of the best ways to develop these new practices is to listen to colleagues and discover what’s working for them. In this post, we’re presenting the case study of Dr. Kevin Gee, an optometrist in Missouri City, Texas. Related posts: |