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O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | J U LY 2 0 1 5
I D E A S T H A T W O R K
B
y going the extra mile, you can make sure patients have every-
thing they need after surgery. Why not phone the patient's
pharmacy before surgery to arrange for post-op medications?
That way, you know the scripts will be ready on the trip home and
patients will have them in hand immediately. You can also send patients
home with a procedure-specific post-op home-care kit. In it is every-
thing patients need for wound care: instructions, antibiotic ointment,
gauze pads, Band-Aids, Q-tips, even homeopathic anti-bruising tablets.
In the pre-op visit or consultation, when we show patients their "after-
the-party, take-home gift bags," they really appreciate that we have
everything covered. And we can be assured that they'll have everything
they need to optimize their home care. The alternative is to say, "Go to
your pharmacy and get this, this and this."
There's a little added cost, but it's Marketing 101. Demonstrating that
kind of forethought and consideration for patients is one of the ways we
ensure that we have very few vacant spaces on our surgery schedule.
Robert Kotler, MD, FACS
Summit Surgery Center
Beverly Hills, Calif.
rkotler@robertkotlermd.com
G O O D I E B A G
Send Patients Home With Recovery Tools
z ALL NEEDS COVERED Don't assume the pharmacy will have everything post-op patients need.
Robert
Kotler,
MD,
FACS
