|
|
|
|
NICHE MARKETING |
|
|
Serving patients and families with medical problems
Tapping into the medical side has obvious
advantages--not least of which is the opportunity to break through the
barrier that keeps so many physicians from referring clients to mental
health professionals.
Michele Horn is a Texas clinician who serves couples and families in
which one member is ill. Many of her referrals come directly from
their physicians. Currently, she sees 24 clients per week, which she
considers part-time. (Many therapists we speak to would call that a
full-time practice.) And she holds a part-time job in addition to
that. “I keep crazy hours.”
She deals a lot with chronic pain, chronic fatigue, and other, more
nebulous conditions that puzzle physicians and lead them to believe
there is a mental health component.
But she also works with families of people struggling with the
devastating emotional affects of diseases like cancer, ALS, diabetes,
and multiple sclerosis. Finally, she sees women with postpartum
depression, generally referred by ob-gyns.
Horn tells us that younger physicians are particularly open to working
with mental health professionals. “They’re becoming more aware that
this is something their patients need.”
Horn does not take insurance, although she says some of her patients
file claims on their own. As a result, therapy can be short-term.
Sometimes, she says, two or three sessions are sufficient to help the
patient get through a crisis. Other cases may last many months.
“I have two couples in my caseload whom I’ve been working with for two
years, on and off. In one case the wife has [multiple sclerosis]; in
the other the wife has lupus.” These are diseases characterized by
flare-ups, and that’s when couples need the most help.
Horn charges $100 for 45-minute individual sessions and $120 for
couples and families. She sometimes runs a support group (though not
at the moment), and charges $60 per person. One successful group she’s
run in the past is for siblings of sick children. “I think that’s a
forgotten population.”
How does she establish her physician relationships? The usual ways:
For starters, she sends a letter outlining her services. She offers to
take them out to lunch, or just to come to the office and chat for a
few minutes.
“But the way I’ve gotten my best results is, when my clients come in I
have them tell me who their physicians are. They sign a release so I
can talk to them. I consult with the physicians regularly and let them
know what’s going on. They usually end up referring another patient to
me.”
Overall, Horn has four physicians referring to her regularly, with a
smattering of new patients coming from several others.
The use of the word “patient” rather than “client” is vital when
talking to physicians, Horn emphasizes. “It’s important to speak their
language,” she explains. “I talk about scientific models, and what it
is I can do for them. A lot of physicians are seeing patients with
somatic complaints. They may have anxiety or depression, and the
physicians don’t really know what to do about it.”
By the way, Horn also gets referrals from a chiropractor. “I just
walked in one day and introduced myself. I asked how we could be a
referral source for one another.”
Occasionally, she speaks to churches, PTAs, and other organizations.
These also bring in clients, as does her Web site, www.michelehorn.com.
People have been paying upfront, with check or cash. “Now I’ve started
taking credit cards,” she adds. But unlike other therapists we’ve
spokjen to, Horn adds a 5% processing fee for anyone using credit
cards.
You can contact Michele Horn at Preston Forest Tower, 5925 Forest
Lane, Ste. 514, Dallas, TX 75230, (972)489-2658,
www.michelehorn.com. |
|
