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What to do in a short week

Happy Thanksgiving!

Welcome to a short week!

Soothe Crack

It is often we find ourselves in this position. We have a three day work week coming up, and we have to prioritize our marketing efforts.

I have felt the “crunch” of a short week. You have too much to do and not enough time. Perhaps you have had that feeling also where there is just so much to check off your to-do list that you feel overwhelmed.

The answer to overwhelm is prioritization.

In setting up our teams for success, we follow this simple cadence that has delivered results.

It will work for you too.

  1. Monday: Prewritten “open for the Holiday Blasts” emailed out for the holiday. (make sure you have staff and are “open” for referrals)
  2. Tuesday AM: Follow up on the Focus 50 accounts from your High Performance Sales Academy Step One.
  3. Tuesday PM: Step 3 of the High-Performance Sales Process – “WIN” The referral generator – follow up and report out on any referral from Friday- Tuesday. Make sure to use this as a patient vignette in your follow-up “Ask”.
  4. Wednesday: Sales Message of the week to generate conversations for high-value patients or clients.
    *52 Week RoadMap of Referrals members November 21st week on your calendar: Holidazzle – Help them to prepare and get ahead of any challenges that may keep them from truly enjoying the holiday.
  5. Friday (if working): Clean up anything outstanding. Follow up on any referrals from the week. Finish your week strong! Make one extra call today!

A short week is your opportunity to compress time and maximize your productivity in 3 days!~

Happy Thanksgiving! Here at Home Care Sales, we are thankful for you and the many ways you help seniors and the fragile around you!

Take Action! And Serve More Seniors!

Melanie

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Which referral sources do I focus on to get the most referrals?

Question:

Which referral sources do I focus on to get the most referrals?

 

This is a GREAT question. The way you are going to get more referrals is to focus on those who are WILLING and ABLE to refer to you! Are they WORTHLY of your time?

Read that again. Is THIS account WORTHY of your time?

 

Most representatives are often subservient to their referral sources. We challenge that paradigm at Home Care Sales.

The owners and representatives we coach and work with KNOW their VALUE! They have significant knowledge in the senior care space through experience and our programs. They ARE the post-acute care experts.

This means they are not “begging” for referrals. They are TRUE care partners with their referral sources and, therefore, MUST prioritize who they spend their time with so that they can make the MOST IMPACT in their communities! When you have the knowledge and the experience, YOU become a resource to your referral sources, helping them get care to the seniors who deserve it! Your care!

Back to the question – which referral sources do I focus on?

1. The highly qualified accounts first!

 

Remember Step 1 of the High-Performance Sales Process? (If not read up on it in our FREE E-book, click here OR discover the whole sales process here in our High-Performance Sales Academy)

These are “A” accounts – that are currently referring to you and have the potential to refer MORE!

These are the accounts that you HAVE to defend and protect!

 

2. Prospects who have qualified and refer between sometimes and your “A” accounts – We call them “B” accounts.

 

When I am coaching, I tell the reps that if they gave you “1,” they have two or more! They just don’t know how to use you. They don’t know the breadth and depth of what you can do for their patients or residents.

These are PERFECT accounts to use the RoadMap to Referrals system. (Do you have the FREE marketing planner yet? If not, get your copy here! It’sIt’s the EXACT calendar we use with our coaching clients) The Roadmap to Referrals ™ system foundation is the Diagnosis Based Selling ™ method.

This method expands the referral sources mindset into which diagnoses you could care for and how you would care for them. Most clinicians – myself included were not taught about home care, home health, or hospice in college, and if your mentor didn’t use these post-acute care services, then you didn’t learn about it in your clinical practice either! You know this to be true.

How often has a client or patient’s family said, “OMG, I WISH we would have known about you SOONER!” The power of selling by Diagnosis is that you reach into the current caseload of your referral sources and pluck out the EXACT high-value referral type that YOU want for your agency.

3. What about those “onesies,” twosies” referral sources? …Or Referral sources that you KNOW have patients or residents to refer but “Just don’t get it.”

 

In the past, we would have had to be ruthless with our time, and these folks just would have been at the bottom of our list, and we would not have been able to call on them much. But COVID taught us a VERY valuable lesson!

YOU CAN MARKET REMOTELY! Woo Hooo!

 

All those accounts you could not justify getting in your car and going across town – NOW you don’t have to! You can simply use remote marketing tactics – phone and digital have changed Home Care Marketing FOREVER!

During COVID, we honed our copyrighting and messaging skills so that the same weekly message we deliver in person in the roadmap to referrals, we have created email, voicemail, and pdfs of our unique selling point for that week!

We can reach so many more referral sources with our message!

This is the BEST time to market Home Health, Hospice, and In-Home Care!

 

We can change lives together!

Make a bigger impact and income by serving more seniors!

Here are three ways we can work together when you are ready:

1. Download our free app! HomeCareSales app

This app has free and paid courses in it – explore!

2. RoadMap to Referrals ™ – this is your map for the exact words to say and get those referrals!

Want to see it in action – click here to get on Mike’s calendar for a tour

3.Coaching for Owners/ Managers or Representatives!

With over 25 yrs out in the field, Melanie and Cheryl have the experience for executive coaching for you or your reps to take it to the next level!

Keep serving Seniors!

Together We Grow!
Melanie

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What can we learn from a hot beach in Mexico?

This summer, we had our family vacation in Cabo San Lucas. The boys LOVED it!

Of course, what is there not to love about a family vacation?

However, when I asked them what their favorite part they both replied the beach! My boys love the beach and swimming, so it was not surprising they said that but what followed?

 

“Mom, I love how we can be on the beach, and all the people come, and we can buy stuff.”

 

The boys love to buy “things” on the beach from the vendors, henna tattoos, wooden carvings of turtles, sunglasses, t-shirts lots of wares for sale. And A LOT of the same thing. Which got me thinking about differentiation.

 

How the beach vendors differentiated themselves fell into three categories:

    • By Price
    • By “customer service.”
    • By relationship and humor

 

Price: The 1st one is obvious by price. We are all consumers, and we know how to ask for a price and compare and get the best price. On the surface, all the t-shirts look the same, so you may simply look for the best price.

 

 

Which happens a lot in private pay in-home care – potential clients “shop” on price because that is all they know how to do. As the in-home care provider, you must elevate the conversation and share with the caller the differences on “why you” (we have a great exercise on this in the High-Performance Sales Academy). Even t-shirts can be different. We have all purchased a $5 t-shirt from the beach, and one wash later, it fits a barbie doll.

 

Was it even worth $5? – most likely not! A higher quality t-shirt might have cost more, but we could use it more. Similarly to in-home care – not all home cares are created equal.

DON’T let it be just about price!

 

Customer Service: While the product was the “same,” the customer service was different per salesperson on the beach.

 

Example: A child’s toy – a top – it was wooden and simple, but the guy we ultimately bought the top from offered to “customize” it by writing the boy’s names with a wood burner and the date, so we will never forget where we got them from.

 

 

This was a great example of taking something that is a commodity and “upgrading” it with customer service!

 

Many referral sources see Home Health, Hospice, and In-Home Care as a “commodity” all the “same,” but often, you can upgrade your position by “out customer servicing” the competition.

We see this at the intake position, making it “easy” for the referral source to refer. Or at the rep position speaking with the family, welcoming them onto service, and sharing “what to expect” as they transition home. The rep can make the whole process smoother and a better experience for the referral source and the patient.

 

Relationship and humor: By the 5th day on the beach, we had pretty much seen all the wares, and the salespeople had come to recognize the boys. One of the funniest lines of the week was a salesman walking by with a case of bracelets who said to us, “Hi Ladies, you haven’t bought any of my stuff you don’t need yet. Almost free for you today!”

 

It made us laugh, and my friend Melissa called him back. He was different, used humor to make a connection, and it worked! She bought a bracelet!

This is also why we say in the RoadMap to Referrals program to incorporate some fun! Yes, you are a professional, and this is serious business. But we could all use a little fun, and it deepens your relationships with your referral sources!

There are always “lessons” around us every day!

 

Be a student! Home Care Sales and Marketing can be challenging! But it doesn’t have to be. We are here for you! We got your back!

If you are interested in discovering how to leave the overwhelm and uncertainty behind, email Mike@homecaresales.com and he can tour you around the programs that can help you grow!

Together we GROW!

Click here to book a free discovery call with Mike! 

Keep serving Seniors

Together We Grow!
Melanie

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How much risk are you willing to take with your money?

Recently an owner was considering us to onboard, coach, and manage his rep.

He told us:

“I am terrible at hiring and managing my marketer. I have had 3 and 1 turned out to be not making a sales call, just sitting home and collecting a check.

The other was double dipping, working with another agency, and getting two paychecks.

The last one drove his car to the hospital and then walked to the gym, where he worked out for 2 hrs every day. I learned about it because one of my nurses worked out at the same gym and asked why he got to work out on company time.

I am OVER marketers. I am done with them, but I know I need them to increase my census, so I am calling you! You do it! I am not willing to risk my money ANYMORE!”

Gladly!

↑ How we feel when someone asks if we want to coach and manage their reps. ↑

 

We will gladly help you orient and onboard your marketers.

In addition, we will coach and train them weekly and hold them accountable.
We will become part of your leadership team!

We hear this story over and over from owners. Their marketers have failed them. But it’s not their fault they need a framework to orient and onboard a marketer.

Most owners were not taught sales management in school or in their professional careers. Our sales coaching program’s structure sets expectations, so everyone is on the same page, compresses time, and gets the rep to production quicker.

Managing marketers is a little like herding cats. And we LOVE herding cats!

Marketers must be independent and a self starter but often lack structure, planning, and time management skills, so they focus on “activity,” not “productivity.”

The HCS coaching and management program gives them the framework to have confidence in the planning to infuse their personality into the relationship development process.

Our framework consists of:

 

  • Orientation to Home Health, Hospice, or In-home care
    • Payment systems
    • Target Accounts
    • Eligibility criteria

 

  • Onboarding – the first 90 days to launch a rep to success
    • Weekly training and knowledge activities
    • Top 10 reasons to choose you
    • CRM included – documentation of best practices – how to set it and automate your sales success
    • How to answer “What do you do?” in a way everyone can understand and know when to reach out to you with a referral

 

  • Training and coaching – weekly checkpoints for training and coaching help the rep break through barriers and keep on target.
    • 52 wks of sales messages that get you high-value referrals RoadMap to Referrals in cluded
    • Live one on one coaching with a veteran marketer and manager
    • Small groups of peer coaching and community – other marketers in different states sharing “what’s working now.”

How does your framework compare to ours?

 

If you are frustrated with managing your marketer – we are here for you.

We LOVE herding cats!

We speak cat because we are cats!

Click here to book a free discovery call with Mike! 

Keep serving Seniors

Together We Grow!
Melanie

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How is what you do like Patrick Mahomes?

Recently, I presented at the Home Health Administrators summit in Las Vegas. It was an extraordinary summit, and I am always grateful for the opportunity to be of service and share our experiences.

 

I heard a lot of statements like this: 

 

“We did ok through COVID, and now the COMPETITION is heating up!”

“The competitive marketers are coming out in DROVES.” 

“We enjoyed the relative ease of communication and relationship during COVID with our best referral sources, but NOW the other agencies marketers are back at our referrals sources and stealing market share.” 

 

I, too, have experienced this in one of our client’s agencies. The rep’s statement to me during the coaching call this week was

“The wolves are out, and they are following me.” 

 

WOW – a lot can change in just a few weeks as communities open up. As agencies hire staff, the marketing team is called on to increase the referrals and fill up the funnel!

This is where Home Care Sales shines. We know exactly what to do.

Below is a quick framework as you approach this quarter 2 (good thing you did your quarterly business review and know your plan for Q2 – if you didn’t, we have got you covered in our Sales Management and Coaching program – reach out to Mike@homecaresales.com to learn more.)

 

    • Review your data (Q1 YOY and over Q4)
    • Rank your referral sources
    • A great defense is a great offense – now is the time to go to your Top 25 referral sources and do your Improvement Process questions.
    • See any GAPs? List them and meet with your manager to see how we can bridge them.
    • Create a 3 step action plan for your Top 25 accounts

 

You can do this! Bulletproof your best accounts, and as my friend, Cheryl says, “lock them in a vault!”

If you are struggling – you don’t have to – we are here for you!

 

Need more ideas and tactics that work in the field?

 

Coaching could be precisely what you are looking for!

 

The best in the world –Patrick Mahomes– gets coaching every week to be at the top of his game. You can’t expect to show up on Sunday and play your best game if you are not practicing, studying, and scrimmaging. So you, too, have the opportunity to be at the top of your game!

 

Click here to book a free discovery call with Mike! 

 

Keep serving Seniors

Together We Grow!
Melanie

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Improving Your Home Health Agency Starts With You!

Cheryl Peltekis, RN “The Solutionist”

So, here’s the big challenge of life according to Jim Rohn:

“You can have more than you’ve got because you can become more than you are.” 

 

That’s the challenge. And of course, the flip side of the coin reads, 

“Unless you change how you are, you’ll always have what you got.” 

 

I have found in my experience that income does not far exceed personal development. Incredible success is something you attract not something you pursue. Success is looking for a good place to stay. So instead of going after it, you work on your personal development. 

I remember getting a scholarship from our nation’s first hospital, Pennsylvania Hospital. I felt like that scholarship was my ticket to advancement. I was so happy. Because, for me, true happiness was not contained in what you get. Happiness is contained in what you become.  

Personal development found me by accident at age of 18. I always loved to read, and one day I bought a book at the used bookstore on the boardwalk in Wildwood New Jersey. 

The book was by John C. Maxwell.  I was with a group of friends, and we went and sat on the beach, and I read the book.

This book changed me from the first day that I picked it up. The book was called, “Intentional Living”  

 

The truth is, I am still working on intentional living. I think it’s an unending challenge to see what you can become. The book taught me some basic laws and I didn’t even realize until recently when I was working with Tony Robbins in Mastermind Group how adopting some new rules, that I lived by has helped me become the version of myself today and it’s a work in progress.  

 

If you look at your bank account and your income and you’re not happy, then set a goal. When I go back and look at my goals to be self-employed. To own multiple million-dollar homes one being on the beach, and to travel the world. 

I’m proud that there isn’t a goal that I haven’t reached. Now, there are still goals to reach, my goal list changes almost quarterly. 

One day my niece saw one of the goal charts that I was working on, and she asked me, she said, “Aunt Cheryl, what’s your secret? How did you become who you are?”  So, I told her, “there are so many secrets to share, but today I will start with the most important one… You, my dear, hold the key to your future self.”

She is now making her own goal charts. I can’t wait to see what she will do with her life. I share all of this with you because success leaves clues. 

Post-acute care has been my life’s work. It has brought me happiness beyond what I thought possible. 

 

Now Melanie and I want to share our little secrets with you! That’s why we started the home health only  Inner Circle. We want to support other owners, to help you grow so you can serve more.  

Our new group is almost full and we would hate for you to miss this opportunity. 

You can apply by going to www.homecaresales.com/innercircle. 

We can’t wait to work on your upgrade!

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You only have a short window for your marketers to use your data – DON’T MISS THE WINDOW

Does your marketing team know your data?

The other day I was working with a client, and I was surprised the reps didn’t know their outcome data.

Nor did they know the outcome scores of their three biggest competitors.

How can you best position yourself against your competitors if you don’t know how you stack up?

When you don’t know your data – you are back to the “old marketing” tactics – the ones we don’t love – trinkets, pens, donuts, lunches. Because here’s the deal – someone will always have “better” giveaways.

…But WHO wants a Case Manager to refer your loved one based on DONUTS????

 

Not me!

I want my Mom to be with an agency that has excellent outcomes!

The only way your referral sources are going to know is if you tell them!

That’s what’s so great about NOW! YOU STILL HAVE TIME! 2022 is a data collection year for Value-Based Purchasing – that means you have time to get out in front of this and share the narrative you want them to know!

YOU CONTROL THE NARRATIVE NOW!

 

But you will not get it next year.

NOW is the time!

We teach Value-Based Purchasing and how to position your agency to our Sales Management and Coaching clients.

If you are interested in learning more about that, book a call with Mike.

Here are some steps to get you started

    • Know your data
    • Know your competitor’s data
    • Compare and see where you shine and outperform
    • Create a handout on the differences
    • WIN the referrals!

You got this- you have more control than you think!

 

It’s all in the POSITIONING!

Keep serving Seniors

Together We Grow!
M

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4 Lessons You Need to Learn in Life to be Successful

Cheryl Peltekis, RN “The Solutionist”

–

Every business gets stuck from time to time.

We fantasize about running a home care, home health, and/or hospice organization with incredible managers who barely need our input. We envision an upward path to greatness with an infinite abundance of money.

But, there are setbacks, hurdles, and areas of quicksand along our journey. How we begin and build momentum may work for a season, but change and complexity materialize, throwing challenges at us from every direction.

The bigger we grow the harder it is to dodge the bullets.

Growing pains are a normal part of running a business. Who knew there were so many ways to get bogged down by people, process, financial, and marketing issues?

If your growth trajectory is stalling, welcome to the 99% club. Stuck happens.

The key to success is to get unstuck as quickly as possible.

 

Melanie and I have over 50 years of experience in growing companies that have encountered many of the same hurdles you are facing right now.

 

The first lesson is to learn how to handle the winters.

I learned this way of looking at disappointments from Jim Rohn. After winter, comes spring. Don’t wish for fewer problems wish for more wisdom and more skills to handle the winters.

 

The second lesson, learn how to handle the springs (opportunity).

How often does the spring follow the winter? Always. Opportunity follows disappointments. Take advantage of opportunities, quickly! They are brief, so you don’t have much time.

 

The third lesson, learn how to protect what you have earned.

Someone is always ready to take your market share, so you need to learn to prevent them from taking it. All good will be attacked! Every company will be a target, and not to think so in naive. All business values must be maintained!

 

The fourth major lesson in life to learn is how to take full responsibility for what happens to you!

When you do well or fail do it with maturity. You are in full control of your future. Your future is determined by what you do today.

 

If you are ready to stop blaming others and ready to learn how to upgrade yourself, you have a limited amount of days to join us. We are almost full. I’m sorry if you missed this opportunity. Other members are now earning Millions more! This could be you! www.homecaresales.com/innercircle

It is not what happens that determines the quality of your life. It’s what you do that changes your outcome. Get unstuck!

You deserve an upgrade! Look at the last 5 years, your gonna repeat them if you don’t change. You can change starting right now! Join the inner circle. This year reach down inside of you and come up with some more remarkable gifts! I challenge you! If where you are right now in your life change it!

Email me directly, and I can assist you with answering your questions, Cheryl@homecaresales.com.

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Looking for a few Home Health owners and administrators to join the league – Is it you?

This week, I presented at the Home Health Administrators Summit for Decision Health in Las Vegas.

It was SO great to see old clients and friends. I have missed them! And I have missed being around SMART – PASSIONATE – home health owners and administrators looking to level up!

I LOVE being around innovative owners – Hospital at Home – Value-Based – Integrating MORE with In-Home Care so that they are reducing hospital readmissions by 30% on high-risk ACO patients. It’s exhilarating!

When you get like-minded abundant administrators together sharing ideas and solutions on how they approached COVID – STAFFING – NOW THEY GOT STAFF NOW THEY NEED ADMISSIONS! The BALANCING Act!

Challenges were asked, and solutions were shared in real-time:

 

What about a therapy contract group who will not “do what you ask” – they want to still be on paper – not turn in their notes on time – but you NEED them.

What about an Admission nurse vs. every RN making their own admissions based on the territory? Does one produce better OASIS consistency?

Another person asked – How do we get all the people involved in a patient’s care to communicate and know what’s going on with that patient in real-time?

All of these questions –

All of these administrators are looking for answers.

 

Maybe you can relate.

I can so relate. When presented with a challenge at one of our clients, the first thing I do is to reach out to Cheryl, and together we brainstorm on who might be able to help solve the challenge – often, its another one of our clients who is has done something similar or using the same EMR that can give insight on how they use it.

The brilliant thing about having us on your team is that we get to see the inside of many agencies over the years and connect with the owners to share thoughts and solutions. We have been doing this for over 20 years.

During the past week or so, you have read emails from us inviting you to our new Home Health Inner Circle. This is a curated group of home health owners, administrators, and executives who all come to the table for connection, collaboration, and impact.

A group of colleagues.

A group of extraordinary owners and executives who are up to BIG things in the world of home health that you could learn from, and in other areas, they can learn from you!

Colleagues – friends who help each other get to the next level.

 

In the next 12 months, home health will go through another radical transformation with payment changes and OASIS E.

 

We are building a group to navigate the changes with ease.

Go from overwhelmed to a clear path, confident in the next steps to maximize your position.

You are invited!

Click here to answer a few questions to see if the inner circle is the right fit for you!

Together we GROW!

Melanie

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Where did Mom finally end up?

Over the past few months, I have written several blogs describing my journey to provide care for my mother and her recent medical issues. Fast forward to today: Mom was in the hospital and couldn’t find an SNF with rehab that had a bed open…

I called her nurse every night and asked, “Should we should take her home?”

I felt like we could rehab her at home with home health. However, her nurse was a little apprehensive.

She was concerned that she would NOT get the rehab she needed. I reassured her with Home Health, PT, and OT that we could create a home exercise plan (HEP) that would ve “comparable” to an SNF rehab plan with less exposure to COVID since Mom is immune-compromised.

After “team” the next day, her Nurse Practitioner called me and said, “Can you support your Mom at home if we D/C her directly home?”

Of course, I said yes with my friends from Interim Home Health!

Yes, I can fly home and help, but here’s the catch you: want to D/C her on Monday, and I get out of COVID isolation on Tuesday. That way I can fly home on Wednesday.

I called my Mom to confirm this is what she wanted to do and was comfortable “going home” she said, “YES, I want to go home!”

 

So I called my brother who lives on the other side of Ohio and said, “Ryan could you get Mom and take her home on Monday? Set her up. I will organize home health and hire an in-home caregiver through the private duty side of Interim until I can get there on Wednesday.” He said yes!

Ryan has a HUGE truck. I had this vision of him “throwing” Mom up into the cab. Luckily for me, Mom already thought of that and told him to go to her house and get her car to bring her home – good idea!

 

By the time I called Interim later that day, they already had the order for Home Health, and I was fielding calls from the DME company to deliver equipment.

Mom made it home safe and sound on Monday – YEA! She had a friend stay with her Monday and Tuesday night until I could get there on Wednesday.

Interim professionals were doing the SOC on Tuesday. She is receiving Nursing OT and PT.

A private duty aide came on Wed afternoon to help her get settled. On Wednesday, I was out of isolation and flew home to 12 inches of SNOW! What a welcome! But, just like the mailman, the Home Health Clinicians came to see my Mom that week. I am happy to report Mom has graduated from her walker! She is still a little unsteady, but her OT and PT are working on that!

I am grateful that she was able to go home.

Moreover, she is THRILLED to be at home!

 

She said to me last night, “Mel, I think I just do better at home. Look at me; I am walking. I am climbing steps to the landing. I don’t think I would have done this well at skilled nursing with rehab.”

I believe her. In her own environment, which she loves, she is HIGHLY motivated to do her HEP and functional activities (last night, we made bread and the night before cookies to take to the kids).

Big shout out to Interim of Meadville, PA – Their customer service is off the charts, and their clinicians are super skilled!

 

What can we learn from this experience?

    1. Hospitals automatically think “SNF with rehab” if they qualify- but it doesn’t have to be that way. In some cases, it shouldn’t be that way.
    2. Your clinicians, if the patient is medically stable and has a caregiver if they are not able to self-care, CAN receive Home Health.
    3. Home Health was the RIGHT answer for my Mom; I just needed to think about how to cover the 1st two days of her discharge since I couldn’t be there.

Tell the story of my Mom to your hospital D/C planners. Let them “visualize” how Home Health can be the answer – especially now that COIVD has so many of them without “beds.” We call these patient vignettes. This is how we get referral sources to connect the dots from a patient to a referral to you.

Need more patient vignettes to help them connect the dots to you? We got you covered!

 

The RoadMap to Referrals is FULL of patient vignettes you can use out in the field to get more referrals NOW.

Gaining referrals does not have to be complicated. Will you let us help you?

Pick a time convenient for you to have Mike show you the system!

Together we GROW!

Melanie

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