Tips to Help Your Practice Serve Millennial Patients

Millennials have developed into quite the unique demographic cohort. The majority of these youngsters grew up with easy access to just about everything from electronics to health care.

These allegedly “entitled” individuals are characterized as having lofty expectations and little patience. While this may not always be true, it is true that they have different needs and expectations. If your medical office attempts to treat millennials in the same manner as older patients, you might lose a considerable amount of business. Let’s take a quick look at some tips to help you cater to and maintain your millennial patients.

Establish Your Online Presence

The last thing millennials are is conventional. They march to the beat of their own drum, to say the least. Plenty of millennials refuse to schedule regular preventive visits with medical care providers. Some studies show that more than 90 percent of millennials refuse to schedule preventive care.

These youngsters would rather hop onto the Internet and conduct a search for health remedies than step foot in a medical office. Yet some are willing to schedule an appointment with a nearby medical care provider after conducting online research. This is precisely why it is imperative that your medical practice has a solid online footprint. Establish a website, social media accounts and monitor feedback provided through online reviews.

Be Upfront With Costs

Millennials are concerned about the out-of-pocket cost of medical care. If your practice doesn’t provide an accurate and detailed quote upfront, the prospective millennial patient will likely hesitate to come in for treatment.

In general, millennials desire low-cost medical care, especially when it comes to medications. Ideally, your website will provide pricing information so millennials can compare costs online. Providing this information up front can build trust with millennial patients.

Keep Wait Times Reasonable

Millennials desire health care services in an “on-demand” manner. This age cohort grew up in an era where they could access information and services with a click of the mouse. If you force millennial patients to wait more than 15 or 20 minutes in your waiting room or can’t schedule an appointment within a week or two, they will move on to another provider. Millennials are even willing to resort to retail clinics due to the fact that they provide convenient care in a prompt manner.

Accept Multiple Payment Options

Millennials desire flexibility when it comes to payment for services rendered. If your office accepts strictly cash, you will lose out on a considerable amount of business. Millennials are more likely going to want to pay with credit cards and over the web. Be sure to invest in your website so millennial patients can pay online. If you want to be even more progressive, allow patients to pay through PayPal.

Consider Offering E-Visits

Millennials desire immediate medical care and advice, and with so much information available online, that’s the first place they’re likely to go. One of the best ways to recruit and retain millennial customers is through “E-Visits.”

These E-Visits allow patients to have a consultation with a doctor via the phone or video chat. Not all issues can be resolved this way, but you could provide answers to some basic questions that don’t really require the patient to come all the way down to your office.

If you are enrolled in continuing education for your board exams, Perinatal Resources is your perfect ally. We encourage you to sign up for one of our upcoming live conferences in Florida and Ohio. The Florida OB/GYN CME conference will take place from Sept. 12 through Sept. 16, and the Columbus, Ohio, conference takes place Sept. 24 through Oct. 1. These helpful live learning experiences serve as an excellent OB/GYN review course that will help you prepare for your board exam. Contact us for more information.