Last week, 7 team members from REM Audiology Associates flew down to Orlando, Florida to attend AHAA’s (American Hearing Aid Association’s) 2015 Convention. It was a productive weekend for all, and despite being stranded in Florida for a few days due to snow back home, everyone returned with a renewed sense of purpose and a lot of new ideas.
Convention classes began on February 18. REM attended seminars on cognition and hearing, office management software, and marketing strategies.
Over the weekend, front office personal attended classes on patient contact. Jeannine from the Evesham office and Robin from Philadelphia learned the importance of both community outreach and process management (phone call protocols, strategic scheduling, and communication with fellow REM team members) so patient followup and care could remain top priority.
Audiologists learned strategies on patient education. They also discussed new technology with the 20 plus vendors who came to and presented at the convention.
The owner track was attended by Liz Patterson, and the management track by Roxanne Mori. Discussions ranged from a breakdown of office processes to implementation of new processes to performance monitoring and clear communication. An owner and an office manager in sync is key.
REM was also pleased to accept an award for organizational excellence, an award given to the office that best exemplifies a team that works together, a team that can communicate while giving the best care possible to their patients.
Elizabeth Patterson was honored to serve on an expert panel discussing community outreach. Various strategies consisting of direct mail, internet, and newspaper ads were brought up. Other audiologists and centers on the panel all shared their best ideas and practices.
When the convention ended, and the snow in Philadelphia died down, the REM team members went back to work with a big takeaway: when talking with patients, when talking to each other, always identify what is necessary and do what is possible. Before long, everything is possible.