Transforming Patient Engagement

Dr Aditi Rajpure shares her insights on how digital transformation is improving patient care, operational efficiency, and aesthetic clinic success.

The fast-paced world of aesthetic clinics is changing all the time. This is where art and science come together to nurture beauty and wellness. More than ever, clinics that want to stay ahead in a competitive market need to use digital technologies.

I am a dentist by profession and have spent the last decade practising aesthetics. Over time, I discovered my passion for marketing, with a specific focus on content creation. My deep interest in the aesthetic, wellness, and beauty industry stems from its unique blend of art and science. This field not only enhances lives by building confidence but also offers the rewarding feeling of contributing positively to people’s well-being.

Moving beyond paperwork

Everything that has to do with running an aesthetic clinic and staying up to date on technology is connected. This includes managing the business, medico-legal complications, and staff. One needs to keep track of and record this huge wealth of information effectively. Traditional documentation is no longer practical, particularly in locations with limited space like Mumbai.

Digital integration

While digital health trackers can help us monitor our health, track our sleep, and stay connected, they can also be inconvenient at times; however, their advantages outweigh the disadvantages. If digital tools can enhance our personal lives, they should be equally transformative in our professional lives, especially in managing complex businesses like aesthetics. The complexity of running an aesthetic clinic demands efficient digital solutions to manage business operations, legal aspects, staff, and patient care.

Addressing digital transformation

The thought of going digital might be scary, as it makes you think of Excel sheets and pie charts. However, it only includes digitising the operational activities, it makes information easily accessible and transferable. All of the information generated within our practice, from business management to patient care, is referred to as data in this context. When this information is turned into a digital format, it can be read and computed, which lets us use analytics to get useful information

Key components

• Data processing: This involves capturing and entering data into systems to make it readable and computable. For instance, clinical decision support systems use data to improve diagnostic accuracy, which is widely adopted in larger public health segments.

• Electronic Medical Records (EMR) and Electronic Health Records (EHR): Basic EMRs handle fundamental patient information, while comprehensive EHRs manage detailed records, including diagnostics, pharmacy data, and treatment histories. This transition from paper to digital records streamlines operations and improves accuracy.

• Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Having a good CRM system is essential for organising patient contacts and advertising campaigns. It keeps track of marketing efforts, follow-ups with patients, and engagement with patients to ensure that no aspect of marketing or patient care is overlooked. Maintaining high standards of patient care is easier with this method, and patients have a better overall experience.

Its perks

Digitalisation has many perks for aesthetic practices, such as:

• Enhanced patient data management: Digitally managing patient data ensures that it is accurate and complete, which lowers the chance of mistakes and boosts trust among patients. Better data hygiene should be a big part of staff training, ensuring that all information is recorded properly and is easy to find.

• Interoperability through collaborative care: Interoperability allows seamless data transfer between different branches of a clinic or even between different practices. This ensures continuity of care and a consistent patient experience, regardless of the location.

• Standardisation of protocols: Consistency and dependability are ensured by standardising treatment protocols throughout one’s practices. Digital records and checklists help keep these standards up-to-date, which is good for both patients and staff.

• Market opportunities: Digital tools help businesses reach new customers by enabling more precise targeting and making the patient journey more personalised. One can make personalised treatments and marketing efforts by looking at data, which will make patients more interested and satisfied.

Its challenges and solutions

Several challenges can come up with digital marketing, like ensuring you are reaching the right audience through paid ads and social media. Understanding the client base is crucial.

The youngest generation – Gen Z – are becoming our potential patients with substantial spending capacity. Embracing digital tools early will ease the transition and enhance our marketing effectiveness.

• Knowledge and skill development: Business owners should understand and engage with their data. This requires dedicating time to learning data analytics and understanding its impact on their practice.

• Choosing the right tools: There are so many tools available these days that it can be hard to choose. It is important to choose digital tools that fit your clinic’s needs and support its operations. This might include comprehensive EMR/EHR systems, CRM platforms, and specialised marketing tools.

• Personalising the patient journey: Analyse patient demographics and treatment histories to develop personalised marketing campaigns and treatment protocols.

• Enhancing clinic environment: Consider digital kiosks, geotagging for targeted marketing, and automation tools like chatbots to improve patient engagement and streamline operations. Relationships between patients and clinics are further strengthened by patient-centred WhatsApp and email campaigns.

Need for digital tools is now!

Embracing digital transformation is now a necessity, not just an option. Incorporating digital tools into your business will not only streamline operations but also enhance patient care and satisfaction.

To start, you should understand your data, choose the right tools, and create a unique customer experience. Your practice will benefit more if you begin going digital as soon as possible.

The shift to digital is unavoidable and essential for the aesthetics industry to stay competitive and provide excellent care. Harness the power of digital transformation to enhance our practices and deliver the best possible experiences to our customers.

The above article has been extracted from Dr Aditi Rajpure’s recent talk at the Aesthetic Medicine India Conference 2024 in Mumbai.

“The complexity of running an aesthetic clinic demands efficient digital solutions to manage business operations, legal aspects, staff, and patient care. ”

About Dr Aditi Rajpure: Dr Aditi Rajpure, Founder and Marketing Consultant, Zest Marketing Management, is a former clinical practitioner with extensive knowledge of clinic operations, marketing, and research in the medical aesthetic industry. With her expertise in service excellence and brand communication, she supports a coveted list of brands in the healthcare, wellness, and aesthetic markets. She understands the intricate details of running an effective practice, from marketing and patient engagement to customer experience. Her deep understanding of customer behaviour enables her to create powerful strategies for health practices, ensuring they remain competitive in a rapidly changing market.