The New Age Physician

Dr. Kumaresh Krishnamoorthy with his kids

In this era of facebook, twitter, blog etc., I believe the time has come for a physician to change too.  As the popular saying goes, change is the only permanent thing in mankind.

Even though a physician or an institute can be good, both benefit from exposure.   When I started my practice at the Silicon City of Bangalore, I sat and analyzed what I should do to stand apart from the crowd.

Accessibility to Medical Tourists

I set aside time every evening to answer emails and communicate on Skype.  It’s a matter of earning trust and caring about helping patients.

A Website With Useful Content

It was a priority of mine to set up an educational website and to make sure the content was patient friendly.  The website was a huge hit and has started attracting patients world over.

The second thing was sending the patient information and literature specific to their needs.   As is common in the west, I prepared disease-specific literature which is unheard of in this part of the world.   This showcased my sincerity, my interest in patient welfare, and also helped the patient understand their problems and my openness.

If a patient had any questions or doubts after going through the literature, I was more than happy to clarifying the same.

High-Touch Communication

Patients have started to cross check with their colleagues and through the net to assess their physician.  The more a physician is responsive to his patients using the internet, the better for him.  For example, Eopinions and Econsults have made direct communication between patients and physicians possible. Also IM like Gtalk/Skype have made possible consults/opinions/doubts to be cleared in real time.

I also regularly follow up on my patients’ health after about a month to make sure they are doing well and that my treatment is working.  The era of internet has made all this high-touch / high-tech communication possible.  Previously there was no efficient way a doctor could follow up with a patient, especially foreign clients, without disturbing them or infringing on their privacy.

Facebook and Twitter

Facebook is an added boom and so is twitter.  With these tools one can publish patients testimonials and accolades received, and educate people about rare procedures performed.  As twitter and facebook increase in popularity so does a physician’s out-reach to the masses.

Linkedin

Linkedin helps establish professional contacts and especially in medical tourism.  Medical tourism is the next big thing happening.  With healthcare costs sky rocketing and more and more patients opting out from health plans in the west, they look towards Asia for their health needs.  For almost half the cost one can enjoy and have the procedures done abroad.  Physicians returning back to their respective countries after training find that the internet adds to the profitability of these trips by allowing a physician to build and maintain a good reputation with professional associates and attract medical tourists.

Blogs

Blogs have started becoming popular because blogs are a more informal and conversational way to pass on info to people about what’s happening in your life as well as discuss what’s new in your industry, including any rare surgeries performed.  This further increases exposure and makes the doctor known to the public/world.

I have three blogs.  In one I write about my personal experience with life and my medical condition, the other I devote to topics of interest to the public pertaining to my area of specialization.  The other is just my musings.

However a physician needs to be sure that he/she is skilled enough to handle things written or showcases as otherwise his/her credibility would be questioned.  A good option is to find an editor/copy-writer resource.   There are people in the world who are looking to build a network of friends globally and will be happy to help.