Changing Office Hours Over the Holidays? Let Your Patients Know—Before They Get in the Car

The winter holidays are notorious for causing increases in trips to the emergency room. With hospitals already congested (again) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s likely patients who slice a finger open while carving a roast, eat a questionable clam, or just have an ordinary sore throat will opt to visit an urgent care center instead of the ED. If you’ve done a good job in marketing your center, they’ll probably just hop in the car and expect to have a typically efficient, high-quality visit and be home in no time. That positivity could turn to anger pretty quickly if they get as far as your front door before discovering that you’ve closed or shortened your hours due to any one of the upcoming holidays. So, update your signage, website, and social media profiles to let patients know when you’re available to provide care. If you have other locations that will be open, list the address and hours of operation; offering directions from your location to the open centers would be even better. And if you plan to stay open according to your regular schedule, say so prominently; you may wind up being the next destination for a patient who just struck out at your competitor’s address.