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Increase Acceptance of Cosmetic Procedures by Offering
Patient Payment Plans

In today’s credit-driven society, most individuals consider the opportunity to finance the products and services they want and need a welcome convenience. Over the last 20 years in the field of healthcare, practices have seen patient payment plans to pay for elective procedures such as dentistry, laser eye surgery, weight loss, and all types of cosmetic treatments and procedures become as popular and common as using Visa or MasterCard. In fact, many patients favor a payment program over consumer credit cards because of special promotional offers such as No Interest, which are often available.

Implementing a patient payment program doesn’t mean taking on the risk and expense of personally extending credit, billing, and collecting payments from patients. Many healthcare practices have already discovered a smarter, more effective solution by partnering with an outside patient payment plan provider to offer this value-added service to their patients. Let’s take a look at how implementing a patient financing program can enhance the patient experience and grow your cosmetic practice. We’ll explore how promoting the availability of patient payment plans during the initial telephone inquiry can help motivate more phone shoppers to schedule a consultation. We’ll also discover how patient financing can be used to enhance the practice environment and increase patient retention and referrals.

More Payment Options Mean More Patients.

When prospective patients know that payment options are available, they’re more likely to select your practice over a competitor. In a recent Inquire Market Research study conducted among patients who used CareCredit®, the nation’s leading patient payment program, to finance their procedure, 78% of respondents said that they were more likely to schedule an initial appointment because a payment plan was offered.

Jeanette DiNardo, an Office Manager for Dr. Gary J. Barsky, has found that proactively offering financing solutions during the initial telephone inquiry can help encourage telephone “shoppers” to schedule a consultation. “When someone calls our practice for information, they usually ask about cost,” states DiNardo. “I always give them the option of financing their procedure with our patient payment program because it eliminates any cost concerns they may have—even before they come in to see the doctor.” Like DiNardo, many physicians and practice managers are discovering that the total cost of procedures, products, and services are less of a concern for patients when you can provide a convenient way to pay that fits comfortably into their lifestyles and budgets.

Promote Payment Options in Your Practice.

You can maximize the potential of a patient payment program by promoting it in advertising and marketing efforts as well as in the practice environment. Placing informational material about your payment plan options in the main reception area and consultation rooms allows patients to learn about the benefits of financing before the consultation or fee discussion. Such marketing materials increase awareness and provide an overview of the program and its benefits to patients.

DiNardo has seen the difference that promoting the availability of payment options can make. “We promote No Interest financing in our practice and as a result, we’re seeing a lot more patients who we wouldn’t have otherwise,” states DiNardo. ASDS practice member Pamela Miller, an office manager at Simmons-O’Brien & Orlinsky, has also witnessed the effectiveness of promoting payment options. “We have patient payment plan brochures in our waiting room and we even send them home with people when they come in for a consultation,” says Miller. “It’s a great way to help patients move forward and schedule the procedure that they want.” Apparently, it’s working. In the study conducted by Inquire Market Research, 80% of patients were more likely to schedule their procedure immediately, instead of delaying, when a payment plan was offered.

Reaping the Rewards of Repeat Business and Referrals.

Establishing long-term patient relationships is a key factor in developing a repeat patient base and in building referrals. Practices that offer a patient payment plan prove themselves a helpful resource for patients interested in scheduling additional procedures. According to Miller, “Today, patients are proactively managing how they choose to age. They want to try and control the process as much as possible with a regular schedule of cosmetic procedures. Offering patient payment plans puts that option within their reach.”

With more patients appreciating the convenience that financing provides, practices that offer the value-added service are more likely to experience an increase in patient referrals. In fact, 72% of patients surveyed by Inquire Market Research about CareCredit said they were more likely to return to providers offering the program and 77% were more likely to refer family and friends. Ann Frank, an Office Manager at 5th Avenue Dermatology Surgery and Laser Center, agrees. “Once financing is in place, patients usually start coming in every month or so for additional procedures. Patient payment plans have definitely helped us build our patient base,” Frank states.

Practices looking for an effective way to help more patients move forward with procedures should not overlook the value of offering patient payment plans as an additional payment option. CareCredit^®, a GE Money Company, is the nation’s leading patient payment program, and has proven to help practices attract more patients, schedule more procedures, and increase their repeat and referral base. CareCredit is currently offered in more than 80,000 practices nationwide and has helped more than 6 million people get care. For more information about CareCredit, visit www.carecredit.com or call 866-247-3049.