Book the right patients.
Screen the rest with grace.
Not every form is a fit, and chasing the wrong ones costs the team the time it needs for the right ones. This is a 30-second read on every lead, and a kind way to close the conversations that aren't a match.
What counts as a qualified lead.
A real person who is in or willing to travel to our region, has symptoms and wants treatment, has commercial insurance or can self-pay, and gives us a real way to reach them. Fit is confirmed by the surgeon at the consult.
Run every lead through four gates.
Book, nurture, or pass.
Move straight to holding a consult time.
- In WA, OR, ID, or AK, or says they'll travel
- Describes symptoms and wants them treated
- Has commercial insurance, or is fine with self-pay
- Gives a real phone or email, will talk times
Interested but not ready. Keep the door open.
- Wants to think it over or check their schedule
- Still comparing options or researching
- Needs to sort out timing or budget first
- Reachable and warm, just not booking today
Not a fit. Close kindly, free up the time.
- Can only proceed with Medicare or Medicaid
- Outside the region with no travel willingness
- Spam, prank, or no real contact details
- Unrelated or urgent medical issue
The short list we collect, and nothing more.
Enough to reach them and prepare, without taking sensitive medical detail over text or email. The full history belongs at the consult.
Do not collect detailed medical history over text or email. Until the data agreement is fully in place, keep written exchanges to logistics. Symptoms and history are discussed at the consult, by the clinical team. confirm: BAA / PHI scope
+ For the web team: keeping spam and unqualified leads out Expand
- Google reCAPTCHA on submit to block bots, and optionally a Google sign-in so a real account stands behind each lead.
- Validate contact details: require a real phone and email with format checks, and verify higher-intent leads with a one-time code.
- Trap junk: a hidden honeypot field, submission rate limiting, and duplicate detection.
- Filter by geography: capture state so out-of-area submissions can be flagged or routed, not worked blindly.
- Set expectations on the form: a short line that we accept commercial insurance and self-pay but cannot bill Medicare or Medicaid, so callers self-screen.
Kind, brief, and logged.
Medicare or Medicaid caller
Warm, no pressure. Log it as a polite pass with the reason, so the weekly data shows how many leads we lose this way.
Spotting and handling spam
- Gibberish name, fake or unreachable number, off-topic message
- Bulk or duplicate submissions in a short window
- Requests with nothing to do with treatment
- Action: one quick verification attempt, then mark spam and stop. Don't keep chasing.
+ Edge cases: out-of-region, urgent symptoms, and "just researching" Expand
- Out of region but eager: if someone outside the Pacific Northwest will travel, treat them as Book now and note the travel plan. Geography is a guide, not a wall.
- Urgent or alarming symptoms: if a caller describes severe pain, heavy bleeding, or anything urgent, don't book a routine consult. Advise prompt medical care and flag it to the clinical team.
- "Just researching": that's a Nurture, not a pass. Offer the brochure, answer a question or two, and invite them to book whenever they're ready.
Protect the team's time so the right patients get it.
A clean screen makes the weekly data honest and keeps the calendar full of real consults.