16 Apr Engaging with Patients During COVID-19
Patient engagement is critical during this time.
Because of this, we have devised a six-phase practice plan to help you navigate through these times. For many of you, you may already be on your way in throughout this path, but for some, it’s not too late to start!
Phase 1: Educate Current Patients 
Utilizing E-mail & Social Media:
- Provide vital COVID-19 information to help patients take proper action.
- Let patients know the precautions your practice is taking to keep them safe.
Phase 2: Build your practice’s Telehealth processes
- If you do not already offer this, research platform options. (We discussed three in a recent blog which can be found here.)
- Research and educate your staff on how you plan to incorporate telehealth as a new avenue for the practice.
- Create/Update internal guidelines for patient management and billing management.
Phase 3: Engage with current patients and begin telehealth
- Have your front desk staff call patients with upcoming appointments and recommend telehealth.
- Update your website to alert patients of your new option for telehealth.
- Sent out an e-newsletter to announce it.
- Post a sample video telehealth visit on social media.
- Continue to post education information on social media and send out via e-blasts but switch gears to information not only about coronavirus but also pertinent information to your patient audience (i.e. at-home exercises, nutrition guidance, workout safety. etc.)
Phase 4: Continue Engagement + explore building new patients
- Directly reach out to your top 25 physician referral sources via email or phone to touch base and inform.
- Update SEO strategy for telehealth searches.
- Update any pay-per-click advertising for telehealth.
- Build a content calendar for both your website’s blog and social media to relay valuable information to patients that are gentle reminders of your practice as well as some posts with direct call-to-action.
Phase 5: Continue Engagement + explore building new patients
- Daily posting on social media discussing important topics.
- Weekly newsletters and weekly blog discussing important topics like physical and mental health.
- Continue SEO Strategy for telehealth.
- Continue to engage with top physician referral sources and engage with Top 50 referral sources via phone and email.
- Consider creating a YouTube account or TikTok account to engage with patients and new audiences.
What happens next? We can’t predict the future but here is what we advise your future plans to be once we are able to leave quarantine.
Phase 6: Transition Practice To A New Normal
- Continue to present telehealth as an option, as it may take some time for patients to feel comfortable leaving their home on a regular basis as well as provides great flexibility to your patients.
- Alert your patients via email and social media of your continued commitment to keeping them safe as you begin to reopen your office to more and more patient visits.
- Reach out to your top 50 physician referral sources to notify them that you are offering both telehealth and in-office appointments at a larger scale.
We hope this six-phase guide helps you throughout this time.
Stay Safe & Healthy
Prescription PR