Is It Time for Memberships at Your PT Practice?

Note: This is the third of a series of blog articles that addresses issues raised by physical therapists on various social media network groups where we are also members.

Before we discuss how you might manage virtual (online) memberships to your physical therapy practice, it might be a good idea to talk about why you would want to do it in the first place.

Perhaps most obvious, extending a wellness or other post-care plan via an online portal or telehealth service helps secure long-term patient relationships.

When you’re successful at selling the service (more on this later), your practice can receive an immediate and sustainable boost in income from patients who sign up for your virtual post-care or wellness programs.

The contact you keep with these patients might also lead to appointments for any future musculoskeletal issues. Without your post-care connection through your virtual wellness program, these same patients might seek treatment elsewhere or not at all for their new aches and pains.

But in addition to post-care/wellness programs, the idea of offering a virtual connection to your physical therapy practice during care might also be worth considering.

Presently, many PT practices see a patient once a week, send him or her home with printed exercises, and gauge the patient’s progress when they return in seven days.

But what if this virtual portal or telehealth connection was in place during treatment and before the patient entered a post-care or wellness period?

HIPAA-compliant messaging. Video-based home exercise programs. Real-time progress and feedback charts. All of the above provided as a complementary or paid service help to engage the patient and add value to the time and money spent with your practice.

And when it comes time for post-care, the established connection is already validated by the patient and worth the paid value (subscription price) your practice puts on it.

So while a virtual portal with a subscription model is a brand new idea for some PTs, the general concept is increasingly familiar with many patients in other areas of healthcare.

According to the American Academy of Private Physicians, there are approximately 6,000 concierge medical (family or general) practices across the US with a steady increase of 25% in just the past few years. 1

Plans vary at these concierge practices from wide-open walk-in access to their physicians to a more limited but still convenient virtual access. The common factor is a subscription model: Pay by the month or year.

The value in a subscription approach is quickly recognizable according to Matt Jacobson, CEO of SignatureMD, a company that helps general practices across the country transition to a concierge care model.

“In the U.S., we allocate 3 percent of our healthcare spending to prevention, and yet 72 percent of diseases plaguing the country are preventable,” Jacobson said in a recent interview. “Concierge medicine is based on the principle that up-front investment in wellness will result in a reduction in acute healthcare episodes.”

Bottom line: The timing is right for physical therapy practices to investigate concierge options and present them with confidence to their patients.

So you may be thinking, which one of my patients would benefit from a virtual connection to my practice? Should I simply provide it as a value-added service? How many patients would pay for such a service during an episode of care vs during a wellness period?

The reality is it might not be a fit for everyone who walks in your clinic’s door from a technical or financial standpoint.

For some situations, however, establishing a virtual or telehealth-based connection at your first office visit (following your initial in-person evaluation) might be perfect to keep patients engaged during a plan of care and beyond.

The Travelers: Do you have patients in rural areas? A telehealth subscription could replace an office visit on occasion. With the savings in gas money and travel time, some patients will realize the value in a subscription right away.

And on the topic of travel, subscriptions are also a fit for those patients whose work schedules force them out of town several days a week.

Imagine being connected to those heavy business travelers virtually and being able to offer advice or deliver a helpful exercise on the spot rather than waiting weeks to be able to talk to them at your clinic.

Are you adding value to that patient relationship through the virtual connection in that situation? Certainly so.

The Home Bound: As with rural and traveling patients, a telehealth connection between you and the patient whose condition prevents regular visits to your clinic can help keep them engaged in their rehabilitation.

You are also providing them a sense of security with a system that enables them to reach you through the convenience of their mobile device.

The Weather Worried: How many cancellations do you receive on snowy or icy days?

Any revenue from your memberships on those wintry days would probably make you feel better about your suddenly open schedule.

And even if you are just providing the service for free, your patients would still be able to supply feedback and receive instructions and keep their progress headed in the right direction.

Your Biggest Fans: And then there are some patients who want to remain connected to your clinic but don’t necessarily need regular appointments.

They are perfect for your virtual wellness/post-care programs.

So it seems there are plenty of benefits to exploring virtual/telehealth connections with patients with the goal of differentiating your clinic and delivering added value.

The good news is the technology is definitely there (check out the solution we have at In Hand Health) to help your practice meet its goals with such an initiative.

The key to success is understanding patient attitudes toward healthcare in general have changed drastically in recent years.

For the most part, they are paying more and expect more service and more value than before for their money.

They also are used to more access to information at their fingertips thanks to the advancements in mobile technology and apps that provide instant information on everything from banking to weather and, of course, their healthcare.

Providers, especially physical therapists, must also value their services when offering them through new technologies and, when possible, not being afraid to charge for them.

The leap may take some faith but the payoffs look promising as the healthcare landscape continues to rapidly evolve.

“Doctors want to practice good medicine instead of fast medicine,” Jacobson said. “Similarly, patients do not want to feel like a number. They want to lock into a close relationship with a trusted physician who will do what’s right for them instead of what’s right according to the payer.”

Originally published at www.inhandhealth.com.