What is your treatment “Session Value” score?
Patient consumers are increasingly requesting a higher value to their therapy sessions as they pay more out-of-pocket for services. And if they don’t get it, they will simply stop coming.
The “Drop-Out” rate amongst the therapy industry is unusually high and it has been growing over the past 5 years.
Some therapy clinics are still living under the fog of old traditional approaches to care. The standard “stationary bike, long list of exercises, soft-tissue mobilization, ice/ems at the end” care no longer has much value.
Here’s what some are saying about their physical therapy experience, “Is it just me or are all physical therapists incompetent?”
Consumers are also speaking out through their absenteeism. Many consumers are choosing to go to yoga, shiatsu, and the infamous Youtube for relief and strengthening.
Cash-based therapists, on the other hand, have been approaching their treatment sessions very differently. Cash-based therapists seem to be much more patient-centered in their approach.
It’s arguably a significant difference according to James Ko, PT.
“What I see is that even in an insurance-based clinic when there is a case where someone pays cash, the treatment that person recieves seems noticeably different than the one provided to other insurance patients. Not always but often.”
But what are cash-based therapists doing that adds more value to their sessions?
The list is longer than you might think. When tested, James Ko found that the typical insurance-based outpatient physical therapy clinic only scored an average of 3 (on his model’s 10-point scale).
Every session has a value whether you know your score or not.
The consumer often feels when a session value is low. And they can definitely feel it when the session has a value below a 5 (on James’ 10-point scale model).
It behooves a clinic to try and maintain a high “Session Value”.
Consistency in “Session Value” scores are becoming the main factor in determining a clinic’s potential for growth with less “drop-off’s”. One of the challenges that most clinics face is that they do not have a standard measuring tool to assess their session’s value. “And if you can’t measure it, you won’t score high in it.” says James.
Most cash-based therapists instinctively offer higher value sessions but when busy can often revert back to the old method they are so accustomed to.
Having an effective tool that grades, defines, and measures the value of a session allows for many benefits to a clinic. They are…
- More easily train staff on how to maintain a high “Session Value”.
- Regularly monitor your average scores.
- Identify weaknesses and fix them so “Drop-Off’s” are kept to manageable levels.
There are many advantages to implementing the “Session Value” Model by James Ko into your clinic. James offers the tool along with the learning at the Cash Client Revolution conference.
But if you are unable to make one of the conferences, start by doing this:
(This exercise will also help you better understand your patients and offer a more patient-centered approach to care)
- Ask yourself what is it that patient’s value most?
- What are the big things?
- What are the small things?
- What are the things they may not even realize they want but would increase the value?
Another option is to survey all your patients and past patients asking this one question,
“What could we do to increase the VALUE of our treatment sessions?”
You might be surprised with the answers you get back.
Wishing you much success.
P.s. SurveyMonkey is a tool you might want to look at to survey your past and current patients. It’s free.
