Darryl Glover, OD, who is a member of the MyEyeDr. family. Dr. Schaeffer says the help MED gives doctors in enhancing the patient experience is a huge benefit to being part of the organization.
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By Mark Schaeffer, OD
June 1, 2022
When looking for a practice buyer, you think about the profitability of the sale, but also about how the sale will impact your patients. When MyEyeDr. purchased our practice a few years ago, both my patients and I were winners. Here’s why.
How Do You Create a Best-in-Class Patient Experience?
The best-in-class experience means connecting the patient to their eyecare. Whether that is helping them understand eye health and visual challenges they may be facing, providing them with solutions to make their lives easier, or identifying and managing problems, each encounter gives us as optometrists the ability to impact someone’s life dramatically.
The experience is more than transactional in our practice. It is a relationship that evolves over time, just as our demands do. We listen to our patients, both in what they express to us and in what is unexpressed, but apparent, to find ways for them to live their best lives.
MyEyeDr. reinforced and furthered my ability to provide exceptional care to our patients. We have a virtual network of practitioners all around the country, so there is always someone to reach out to for a consultation, or to facilitate a transfer of care when a patient needs attention, but is not in town. The organization has invested in technologies to make the patient journey more seamless, such as online scheduling that fits patients’ lifestyles.
Taking Patients on a Personalized Wellness Journey
MyEyeDr. provides a personalized wellness journey for each patient who walks through our doors. Each step along the patient’s journey correlates to a part of the experience beyond the exam itself. For instance, it encompasses the transfer of trust between the doctor and associate when discussing eyecare solutions. Each aspect of the journey ties into what makes a great and lasting impression upon the patient.
MyEyeDr. supports practicing to the highest level of optometry. When our patients can get expert medical care from their trusted community doctor, that relationship is strengthened by being a full-service practice.
The patient knows they are receiving a comprehensive evaluation, we as doctors thrive by fulfilling our promise to be the care provider we were trained to be, and the practice grows by being at the forefront of patient care. We have continued to invest in ocular surface disease services, enabling us to pilot new technologies in diagnostics and management across the board, from anterior to posterior segment care.
Letting Patients Know All We Can Do For Them
Education is the most important tool for us to communicate what we can do for the patient. At the comprehensive eye exam, we take the time to educate the patient on our ocular findings, even when everything looks normal.
For example, when we review the retinal screening photography that we obtain from most patients, we take the time to not only talk about disease states we may see, but also, for patients with no pathology, what abnormal might look like. We discuss the ways that we are there to help them when there is a problem. Our staff knows to accommodate anyone with an ocular urgency or emergency in a timely manner.
At MyEyeDr., we believe in operating as “One Team.” That means everyone. Staff members are active participants, not bystanders, in the care of our patients. They are continuously trained on new trends and innovations in eyecare. Our doctors and management team take time to further support staff education because they know each person plays a vital role in the entire patient experience.
Focusing on Continuous Improvement
The leadership team at MyEyeDr. is receptive to hearing ways to improve the process. Director of Clinical Excellence Jeff Strand, OD, and our Vice-President of Professional Services, Scott Allison, OD, have an open-door communication policy. They are always willing to hear what is working and what can be improved in the patient journey. For example, we have had numerous discussions about specialty care as it relates to myopia management and ocular surface disease, and how we can bolster support within our OD network to provide these services across the country.
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We are currently upgrading our dry eye treatment room with a spa chair and other improvements to create a more pleasant experience for patients as they receive the newest meibomian gland disease treatments. This has no immediate ROI, but it enhances our patients’ experience.
Keep your eyes peeled for what MyEyeDr. has planned for the near future. We are always looking for innovative ways to provide the highest level of care to all our patients to help them live their best lives.
Mark Schaeffer, OD, is Clinical Field Manager and optometrist at MyEyeDr. in Birmingham, Ala. He is a founding member of the Intrepid Eye Society. To contact him: mark@drmesconsulting.com
