Patient Experience: What Happened?
This week we were presented by an interesting article in TIME on the topic of patient burnout. That’s a new one right? We’ve spent the last decade talking about physician burnout, and for good reason. With American healthcare being gobbled up by corporations and private equity patients are beginning to feel the same squeeze that doctors have felt for quite a while. With stagnant reimbursements across many fields of medicine the answer by higher ups have been to increase productivity and see more patients. You have very likely experienced this first hand in one of many ways - more difficulty making appointments, long wait times once arrived, seeing lower level healthcare providers, aggressive billing practices and the like.
As a healthcare provider myself, I do not enjoy going to see my primary care doctor and have actually taken steps to change how I receive primary care due to the above issues. What I found was my self making a shift from standard primary care to a more boutique approach with a technology forward provider. This has allowed me to see providers on my own schedule, as needed, with a technological backend to allow for Rx refills, general questions, and more. This is the revelatory direction we need in health care - returning patience convenience to healthcare.
As a both a provider and a practice owner I an able to see both sides of the coin. I have long worked in medically based settings focused on care and results. The patient experience veered more towards trying to keep patients from getting angry about waits or copays or fees, etc. By the time the patients made it into my exam lane they were burnt out - disappointed in their pre-appointment experience and expressing themselves to the first person they can. When I originally came up with the idea of Urban Eyecare my first thought was how do we change the patient experience for the better?
What we created centers around an evidence based medical approach to primary eyecare. We’ve worked to decrease and generally eliminate wait times, create a smooth digital booking experience with wide availability, and provide a 1:1 direct connection to the front desk via text. We believe that half of medicine is education and there’s no reason we cannot tailer the experience to eliminate the worst parts of exams and find better solutions. From no puff eye exams and digital refractive technology to state of the art retinal imaging and extended time with the doctor - we do what’s best for you, not us. We don’t overbook and our team exists to answer questions and give you an overall smooth experience. Is there something we can improve upon? Let us know, we’re always striving to improve.
Come see us, have a seat on the couch and check out the unique independent eyewear. We only sell brands we personally love and believe in direct from the artisans that produce them. We understand that eyewear is an investment and offer 2 year frame warranties and 2 year scratch warranties to protect them. Each office is stocked with free lens cloths designed by local artists in from our artist cloth program and lens spray to keep them fresh for as long as you own them. We hope to help you build an eyewear wardrobe to be proud of and love.
We can’t wait to see you!
Dr. K
