An App That Facilitates Physician Referrals

Social media and mobile apps are an important part of any healthcare marketer’s toolkit; these technologies are crucial in building brand awareness and increasing patient volume.

But what about their use in driving physician referrals? Most of the time a healthcare referral is made, it is made by a physician, not a consumer or patient.

“This physician aspect is a significant part of the decision,” says Dan Cobb, CEO and chief strategy officer for Daniel Brian Advertising (DBA). According to statistics gathered by DBA, a physician makes 64 percent of referrals for complex care procedures.

DBA worked with longtime partner Henry Ford Health System to develop an app for physicians referring patients to the Henry Ford Transplant Institute. The app, launched in 2015, has been a successful part of the Transplant Institute’s referral program.

Although mobile apps and social media capture so much consumer attention, it’s difficult for marketers to get meaningful ROI in this space, Cobb says. The solution? Rather than working your way into an existing social network or app, create your own mobile space.

“If you can’t buy the media, be the media,” Cobb says. “Now it’s about creating your own platforms to communicate to consumers and build relationships.”

To that end, DBA and Henry Ford worked together to tip the mobile numbers in their favor by building a custom app for referring physicians. The goal was to create an easy-to-use tool that helped manage existing physician relationships, build brand awareness, and increase referrals to the transplantation program.

To learn what the app includes, and how similar technology could help your organization, read the full story now:

How Emerging Technologies Helped Build Physician Referrals at Henry Ford Transplant Institute

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Matt Humphrey
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