Women's Dermatologic Society

By Dr. Miesha Merati “Availability, affability, and ability, in order of importance.” I remember the dermatologist who mentioned this to me as the cardinal rule of a successful practice. However, my experiences as an early career dermatologist taught me that the way you make patients feel is an essential underlying motif that determines a successful doctor-patient relationship. How many of us have faced a disgruntled patient after a tumultuous work day, filled with complicated cases and pure chaos? Now, how many of us are able to elate the patient when it seems like all odds are against us? Truly the latter is a skill that cannot be learned in a textbook and remains an attribute to what makes a physician simply outstanding in the patient’s eye. Patient satisfaction is essential for treatment outcomes, patient retention, physician reputation, medical malpractice, and nowadays, is even linked to reimbursement. A rushed doctor with shorter visits, less explanation, and fewer partn...

By the WDS Practice Advisory Committee From Dr. Lisa Pruett: Know your sweet spot. If you feel you are a better dermatologist by decreasing the number of patients you see in a day, then do it. I became a physician to help patients, not to be rushing all day long in clinic to see as many patients as I can to leave my charting for after hours. Find that balance where you feel you can be present with each patient and enjoy practicing medicine. From Dr. Sarah Harvey: Everyone will find the schedule template that works best for their clinic flow and interests. Since I have a mix of Mohs, surgical procedures and medical dermatology, I find it more efficient to have dedicated days/half days for procedures with the remainder of the schedule open for medical visits and surgical follow up. I also allow overbooks for isotretinoin and wart follow ups as well as suture removal visits since these tend to be very quick. Invest in a scribe to improve your efficiency and quality of life. From ...