How to plan an open house for your practice.

Mount Laurel, N.J., to the nearby town of Hainesport, N.J., my colleagues and I unveiled our new medical facility at an open house for our new community. We invited thousands of existing and prospective patients to tour our state-of-the-art facility. We wanted to show off the hard work we had invested in selecting the office location, designing the floor plan and decorating the interior. We owed it to ourselves, to our loyal patients and to the community to open up our office and display our venture. Although we were excited about our event, it required a good deal of preparation (about 40 hours over three months), from designing flyers and advertisements to turning our medical office into an entertainment venue by replacing waiting room chairs and magazine racks with tables of food and balloons. Ultimately, all of our efforts paid off when new patients showed up for office visits only days after our open house. To date, approximately 30 new patients have scheduled appointments with our office after attending the open house. Relocating your practice is not the only event that calls for an open house. Purchasing a laser for cosmetic surgery, celebrating a 10th anniversary in practice and adding a new physician are just a few good reasons to host an open house. Once you have your reason, here’s what you should do to ensure that your open house is a success.