As a physician, you know that your reputation plays a critical role in the success of your medical practice, but you probably don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what your patients say about you – good or bad. You strive to provide excellent patient care and hope your reputation will reflect your dedication. You can’t control what your patients will say, and until recently, you had no way of knowing how they might talk about you to their friends. But now, sites like RateMDs.com, Vitals.com, and Dr. Scorecard.com allow physicians to see exactly what their patients are saying, and in some cases, respond.
The rise of the interactive web combined with increasing expectations about healthcare has triggered an assortment of new websites where patients can go online to read and write reviews of individual physicians and healthcare facilities. While a positive review can be helpful, most of these sites allow people to post anonymously, which can potentially result in some very damaging and unwanted publicity.
While some physicians are suffering as a result of negative claims posted online, others are benefiting from positive reviews. In a recent article on Medscape.com [1], one physician reports receiving numerous referrals as a result of positive reviews on physician rating sites. He hasn't left it up to chance, however, the otolaryngologist actively assists patients in getting online so they can post a positive review.
With more than 40 sites available to rate physicians, the trend isn't disappearing anytime soon. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Consider the pros and cons:
Pros:
- Patient reviews can be viewed as constructive criticism which you can use to improve your patient care.
- Positive patient reviews can bring in new patients.
- These sites can give you more exposure online, which is very important as more and more consumers use the internet to search for healthcare providers.
- If a site allows you to respond to a review, this can be an opportunity to show your professionalism and empathy as you present your side or perspective.
Cons:
- Some patients have unrealistic expectations when it comes to healthcare and blame physicians for situations or outcomes over which the physician has no control.
- Disgruntled patients are far more likely to post on a review site than satisfied patients, thus skewing the overall picture.
- Opinions can be presented as facts although they may not be factual at all. A disgruntled patient can give an unfavorable review which is not a fair or accurate snapshot of what happened in reality.
- Potential new patients (and thus significant revenue for your practice) can be lost if there is an exceptionally bad review or several negative or neutral reviews and not enough positive reviews to counterbalance them.
- Many sites do not allow you to respond to the reviews posted, thus giving you no voice when an unfair or inaccurate review is posted.
- Some people fail to recognize the potential problems with reviews posted by patients – particularly when they are allowed to post anonymously.
- Unless the site is carefully monitored and deletes blatantly slanderous reviews, your reputation can be damaged.
Don’t let the list of “cons” discourage you. There are a number of things you can do to offset potential damage from negative or defamatory reviews, and benefit your practice overall.
Do:
- Use your website and social media to create a strong online presence so patients find your site when searching for your name.
- Make sure your website highlights your strengths and includes patient testimonials.
- Ask your patients to post a review if they had a positive experience.
- Encourage your patients to let you know if they feel they have had a bad experience in any way.
- Have your patients fill out a satisfaction survey that encourages them to give feedback regarding anything they feel would improve their experience.
- Be sure that you communicate with your patients. A primary complaint with patients is feeling like you rushed through an exam, procedure or instructions and either were not thorough or did not clearly reveal side effects, risks, etc.
- Do everything you can to manage your patients’ expectations regarding treatment outcomes.
Don’t:
- Retaliate or respond in an angry or unprofessional manner to a patient who gives a negative review.
- Be quick to file a lawsuit. Sometimes litigation can do more damage to your reputation than a negative review.
- Ignore patient concerns or brush them off.
Another option is the anti-defamatory solution offered by Medical Justice, a web company helping physicians avoid frivolous lawsuits. To avoid problems with physician rating websites, Medical Justice encourages physicians to have patients sign a waiver in which they agree not to post any comments about the physician or facility online. [2]
Physicians are finding out the ease with which an unhappy patient can post a negative review, but remember that the majority of consumers are intelligent enough to recognize that such sites (and posted reviews) likely do not give the whole story of any particular physician or facility. Consider the list of “do’s and don’ts” above and always look for ways in which you can improve your patients’ experience when they come to you. While you cannot control what others post about you, you can make an effort to establish a positive web presence by updating your website frequently, engaging in social media, and of course, by encouraging your happy patients to write and post online reviews.
Sources:
[1] Terry, Nancy R. "Physician Rating Websites Get Zero Stars from Doctors.” Medscape Today, April 24, 2009.
[2] "The Problem of Physician Internet Libel and Web Defamation." Medical Justice Corp.