Guest guest Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I would adv to keep support groups more so over an educational session and should be free for all not charged . Since it helps patients to intereact with others who are considering surgery as an option . - Open support group Sent: Mar 2, 2011 9:18 PM Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 We allow patients from other surgical programs to attend our groups. These individuals are often wonderful assets to our meetings. We do not charge a fee for anyone. Here’s a “pro” – the individuals who had surgery elsewhere are now exposed to our program and would likely refer to us rather than their surgical program. From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of AndiB Sent: Wednesday, March 02, 2011 9:49 AM Subject: Open support group Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 Our support group is open, free-of-charge, to patients who did not have their surgery with us. We have a had a good response and pt's seem very grateful, especially ones who have just moved to the area. One of the financial pro's that I have noticed, is that after attending several meetings, many patients want to have a one-on-one appointment with me. We DO charge for those appointments, and patients don't seem to mind paying that fee. Patients seem genuinely surprised when they call us and find out that they can attend meetings for free and it seems to give them a positive feeling about us before they even walk through the door. Because of that, there are several patients who have switched their follow-up care to our practice/surgeons, after attending our meetings for awhile, which is of course, a financial benefit to our program. We don't encourage this or try to steal patients away from other programs, by any means. Due to our location near a military base, these new patients are almost always folks who have recently moved into the area, so not charging for group is a win/win situation in our case. In a more urban area, with multiple program options, this may not be so. Good luck with your decision! Kirkpatrick, RD, LD ---------- Original Message ----------From: "AndiB" <andibukowski@...> Subject: Open support groupDate: Wed, 02 Mar 2011 15:48:30 -0000 Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks ____________________________________________________________Buying Penny Stocks?Get The Latest Stock Alerts. Sign up For Our Free Online Newsletter!AmericanStockAlerts.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 We allow others to come to our support meetings for a $5 fee. Crandall, RD Sparrow Weight Management Center East Lansing, MI 48823 From: AndiB <andibukowski@...>Subject: Open support group Date: Wednesday, March 2, 2011, 10:48 AM Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 7, 2011 Report Share Posted March 7, 2011 Andi, We also allow people from other programs to attend our support groups free of charge. I think it particularly benefits those who had there surgery at a site that they don't live close to so at least they're getting some support vs no support. From: AndiB <andibukowski@...> Sent: Wed, March 2, 2011 10:48:30 AMSubject: Open support group Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 10, 2011 Report Share Posted March 10, 2011 I agree with this philosophy - our groups are open to anyone who has had bariatric surgery. This may also lead to more business with your healthcare professionals. The important part of the groups are that people come to them and support one another, not that you make $ from them. Why exclude pts that had the surgery elsewhere? Chances are that you've done surgery on pts who would prefer to go to support groups closer to there home, which may not be your facility. Wouldn't you want them to be able to join a group more convenient for them rather than not go because of the cost? I think if all centers had this policy, it's a win-win for all. On Mon, Mar 7, 2011 at 4:08 PM, Gregoline <jennifergregoline@...> wrote: Andi, We also allow people from other programs to attend our support groups free of charge. I think it particularly benefits those who had there surgery at a site that they don't live close to so at least they're getting some support vs no support. From: AndiB <andibukowski@...> Sent: Wed, March 2, 2011 10:48:30 AMSubject: Open support group Hi all, our clinic is debating whether or not we should open up our support group sessions to patients who may not have recieved their surgery at our clinic. Currently, we do not allow anyone to our support group (pre or post-op) who hasn't had their procedure done with us or isn't planning to unless they are willing to pay a fee. So far the fee has been high enough that nobody that has been interested has decided to pay it in order to attend. I am trying to come up with a pro/con list of opening our support groups up to others and/or changing/omitting the fee and would love to know what you are doing. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks -- LeBrun, MPH,RDSenior Nutritionist Washington Medical Faculty Associates2150 Pennsylvania Ave., NW Ste 6-105Washington, DC 20037202.741.2422clebrun@... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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