"The Many Benefits of In-office Dispensing"

In-office dispensing is defined as the selling of products within your office to patients, and in many cases to the public.  This practice has been common for many years in many physician offices, especially those of dentists, dermatologists, and plastic surgeons.  In-office dispensing has gone through cultural changes over the past few years due to economic forces such as managed care and increased overhead, as well as to physicians’ education leading to a more comprehensive approach to treatment.

The attitudes of physicians and changing lifestyles of their patients have hastened the expansion of in-office dispensing.  Most patients are rushing from one appointment to another and appreciate the convenience of not wasting the time to purchase the products at a local store.  The economics of managed care have caused many physicians to look at ethical alternative sources of income while keeping the patients’ best interests in mind and maintaining a professional image and reputation.  These factors have been the driving forces leading to the exponential growth of in-office dispensing, as well as to the patients’ acceptance of the concept and appreciation for the related convenience, delivery of comprehensive medicine, and quality of care.

In podiatry school and residencies, doctors are taught that we are “professionals” and that we must maintain this pristine perception in our community and amongst our medical peers.  So the retail perception that many of us associate with in-office dispensing creates conflict associated with our education and what is called our “paradigm”, also known as our way of thinking.  A common denominator we have seen amongst these successful practices is their ability to open their minds to treatment tools and protocols to benefit their practices.  These include the use of in-office dispensing, and not making the cardinal mistake of thinking for their patients and trying to look from their perch.  Too often we develop mental blocks because of what we think the patient is thinking, such as “they can’t afford that”, “this doctor is just trying to make money” and “what’s this, a retail store?”.

The many benefits of in-office dispensing include:

* Improved patient satisfaction because of convenience and professional quality of product delivered.
* Significant increase in compliance with instructions for use provided by myself and staff with product in hand.
* More complete approach to patient care that our patients greatly appreciate.  They often articulate how great their feet feel due to using the products we use.
* Viable and ethical source of income that has dramatically enhanced our bottom line.
* Profit sharing with our staff, increasing job satisfaction and reinforcing the importance of the team approach.
* More patient contact with my office when they return just for purchase of a product.
* Increased patient referrals by virtue of current patients discussing their satisfaction with products and care with others.
* Very little storage room is needed for your return on investment.  Many simple, inexpensive options are available for effective storage.

In the next issue of FootZine we will discuss the assistant’s important role in a successful (for the patients, doctors and assistants) in-office dispensing program.