fix and fit

What Are We Telling Our Patients?

Alex Yoho, ABOM

As dispensers, sometimes we cut off our nose to spite our face. Without even knowing it, we may say things to patients that sabotage business and credibility.

WARRANTY WORRIES

We have damaged our businesses with warranties. Not that they are bad in and of themselves; in fact, savvy shoppers may be won over if you offer one.

The problem comes when we tell a patient not to worry about anything because the warranty will take care of all their problems. Nothing could be further from the truth.

When you take your car in for warranty work and a part takes a day or two to arrive, do you enjoy being without your car? The same inconveniences occur for the patient with eyewear warranties…plus, the patient is associating your business with that inconvenience.

Some businesses actually call their patients to remind them that their warranty is about to expire! Warranties only work for your business if they are used as intended, not as a substitute for buying new lenses.

If you'd like to keep your lab bill from rising, communicate to your staff and your patients that they have a responsibility not to abuse their warranties.

NEGATIVE SELL

Then there are the dispensers who essentially tell patients to expect problems. If you tell a patient they will have a little difficulty getting used to their new glasses, they certainly will.

Why would you cause yourself the grief of a patient coming back, sometimes days in a row, because you suggested they might have a little difficulty?

Be a responsible dispenser: If a patient has a 10-degree axis change on a -3.50 cylinder that they've been wearing for four years, they will have difficulty. But even then, you should put a positive spin on what will be a natural adjustment process.

■ EXPERIENCE. If you have the experience to explain to the patient why things will be different, it will help them understand the process.

For example: When a major change, such as the one described above, occurs, inform the patient that his eyes will be seeing perfectly with his new prescription, but his brain has become accustomed to interpreting the information that the eye sends to it the same way for four years. As a result, he needs to wear the glasses and his brain will catch up. It won't take too long.

■ INEXPERIENCE. If you don't have the experience to explain these situations, get yourself educated, and look for resources that have positive scripts that you can use. At the very least, be positive and assure patients that they will do fine.

In the unlikely event that they don't adapt smoothly, you can then be the hero as a troubleshooter. EB