Jodena Consulting offers advice on making patients feel special.

It seems that all you hear and read about these days is the need to attract more new patients. And as a management consultant, I am advising every client on strategies to be successful in this important endeavor. But I fear that in the pursuit of the new patient, we may tend to forget about – or certainly take for granted – our long standing patients of record.

I recently read an interesting study that analyzed the data as to when a patient decided to leave a dental practice. You might have thought it would be early on in the relationship. A patient decides that the staff, doctor, practice philosophy – whatever – doesn’t meet or match their expectations – so they leave. In actuality, it turns out that in this study, the average patient leaving a practice did so after six years. At the exit interview, here was the dominant theme. “When I first started at the practice, they always made me feel welcome and important. Nowadays, it seems like they don’t care that much about me anymore.”

That is shocking! And what a wake up call it should be. The dollar value of a dental patient – returning year after year for continuing care and new dental treatment – is huge. And think about the referrals and good will generated in the community from keeping a satisfied patient in the fold.

Hello – these patients are the people who pay our salaries and keep us in business. Perhaps it is time to redirect some energy towards our existing patients. Please look for every and any way to make an existing patient feel special. Praise them – coddle them – thank them – handle them with kid gloves. Let them know how much you care about them. To do anything else is indefensible and irresponsible.