Every clinic has a list of people who came for three visits, felt better, and never rebooked. Some of them finished care. Some didn’t. A few still have the same problem and think you’ll be annoyed if they call.
Reaching out to them is cheaper than finding new patients, and it can be good care too. Done badly, it feels like a sales campaign. Here’s how to do it well.
Who counts as “lapsed”
Don’t pull everyone who hasn’t visited lately. Split them into groups, because each needs a different message.
- Left mid-plan. They stopped before the course of care you recommended ended, and nothing is booked. These are the people most likely to benefit from a check-in.
- Finished care, then went quiet. They met their goals. A friendly check after a few months is fine. A hard sell is not.
- Long-term or maintenance patients who used to come regularly and stopped.
- Discharged for another reason, such as moving away, referral elsewhere or a complaint. Leave these alone unless there is a clear reason to contact them.
- Anyone who asked you to stop contacting them. Never contact them.
Start with group 1. Run a report in your booking software for patients with no future appointment and a last visit between three and twelve months ago. If your system can’t do that, ask the support team. It’s a common request.
Before you contact anyone: consent and privacy
This is the part many clinics skip. It affects whether you can email or text someone at all. Rules differ by country, and this is not legal advice. If you’re unsure, ask your regulator, your privacy officer or a lawyer.
Canada (CASL). Canada’s anti-spam law requires consent before you send a commercial electronic message, such as an email or text. Consent can be express (they agreed) or implied. Implied consent from an existing business relationship covers a purchase in the two years before you send the message, or an inquiry in the previous six months (CASL, section 10). So a patient who last paid for a visit three years ago generally can’t be emailed without express consent, and you should check with a lawyer before you assume otherwise. Every message must identify you, give your contact details and include an unsubscribe that you honour within ten business days (CASL, sections 6 and 11). A letter or a phone call is not covered by CASL, though other rules apply to calls.
United States (CAN-SPAM). The FTC’s rules apply even to messages sent to former customers. You don’t need prior consent, but you must not use a misleading subject line or sender name, you must say that the message is an ad if it is one, you must include your valid physical postal address, and you must honour opt-outs within ten business days (FTC compliance guide). Texting has its own separate rules, so check before sending texts.
Patient privacy. In the US, HIPAA treats a communication about your own services differently from marketing paid for by a third party (HHS). Elsewhere, privacy laws vary by province, state and country. Whatever your location, a message should not reveal why someone attended. Never write “your knee rehab” on a postcard or in an email subject line. Anyone in the household might read it.
The lowest-risk first approach is a personal phone call from the clinic or a letter in an envelope, with an unsubscribe or “let us know if you’d rather not hear from us” line.
What to say
Aim for care, not a sales pitch. Write as a clinician would. Keep it short, personal and easy to answer.
A phone call or voicemail (from the clinic, not an unknown number):
“Hi [first name], it’s [name] from [clinic]. I’m checking in to see how you’re getting on. If you’d like to book a quick review, you can call us on [number] or book online. No pressure at all, and if you’d rather we didn’t call, just say so.”
Leave the reason for the call out of any voicemail. Don’t mention the condition or the treatment. The front desk phone script has wording for staff who are not used to calling people.
A letter or email (where you have consent):
Subject: Checking in from [clinic]
Hi [first name],
It’s been a little while since we saw you. We wanted to see how you’re doing. If you’d like to talk to us about how things are going, or book a review, you can [book online here] or call [number].
If you’d prefer not to hear from us, reply to this message and we’ll take you off our list.
[Name], [role] [Clinic address]
Keep the subject line plain. No “Miss us?” or “We haven’t seen you in a while!” Some people read that as guilt.
What to offer
You don’t need a discount. Often the best offer is the easy next step: a short review appointment, a check-in call, or an online booking link. If you want to promote a discounted visit or package, check your regulator’s advertising rules first. Some regulators require that a discounted assessment still be a full assessment, for instance, and that package deals disclose what’s included and how refunds work (College of Physiotherapists of Ontario). See our advertising rules guide.
When to send
- First contact: a call or a message, depending on what you have consent for.
- Second contact: one follow-up two to three weeks later, if you haven’t heard back.
- Then stop. Two contacts is enough. A third is nagging.
Tidy your records afterwards. Note who replied, who booked and who asked to stop. Record opt-outs straight away.
Make it routine
A one-off campaign helps once. A habit helps all year.
- Run the lapsed-patient report on the first Monday of each month.
- Put one person in charge of making the calls or sending the messages.
- Send each person only one message per cycle.
- Look at the results every quarter: how many contacted, how many booked, how many asked you to stop.
Also look at why people drop off. If many leave after visit three, look at how you explain the plan. If many cancel and never rebook, look at your reminders and your cancellation policy. Reactivation is useful, but preventing the drop-off is better.
Check it today
Run one report: patients with no future booking and a last visit between three and nine months ago. Count them, then read ten of the records and decide who it would be kind to contact. You will often find a handful where the right call is obvious.
If you’d like us to look at how your website and Google profile handle those returning patients, claim your marketing audit and we’ll send you what we find.