Bond Clinic, PA: Nothing but the best

Source: Exec Digital USA

Date :21/07/2008 10:05:14

Bond Clinic, PA is a small institution with a big presence in Central Florida. CEO Howard King talks about the reasons behind its success.

Written by Kevin Doyle and Produced by Shaheen Mohammedipour

The description offered by CEO Howard King of the Bond Clinic, PA, conveys the quality of care patients can expect to receive at the Winter Haven, FL facility.

“We’re a 50-physician multi-specialty medical group practice that is physician-owned and operated. We provide care for a broad spectrum of healthcare needs, and offer full on-site lab and radiology services, nuclear cardiology, and stress echocardiography. We have everything you would find in a small community hospital except for in-patient beds.”

Bond Clinic has been in operation since 1948. According to King, the staff includes 52 contracted physicians and approximately 100 clinical staff members. In all, the clinic has nearly 400 employees, all focused on a single goal.

“The patient comes first. We are a patient-centered organization and we want to provide the best possible care we can within our community,” says King, who joined the Bond Clinic in 2002. King has approximately 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry at high-profile facilities, including The Swedish Medical Center in Seattle – the largest of its kind west of Minnesota and north of San Francisco.

Though a number of similar facilities are located within a 20-mile radius of Bond, it is among the few clinics accredited in a large number of modalities and imaging. The clinic currently holds American College of Radiology accreditation in MRI, CT, nuclear cardiology, and obstetric and gynecological ultrasound. “We embarked on this idea that it doesn’t do us any good to know we have high quality. It is important to validate the quality of service we provide,” says King.

Located in a popular winter retreat area for northern residents, the clinic pays particular attention to that segment of the population. “When people come down for the winter, we want to be able to provide them with the same level of care that they have had somewhere else. That’s very important to us,” King explains.

Servicing the patient

In addition to providing state-of-the-art on-site imaging and radiology, Bond Clinic offers a wide range of services in more than 20 specialties, including general surgery, interventional cardiology, obstetrics and gynecology and thoracic and vascular surgery. “We are a very flat organization with a very good core group that reports to me and very, very bright physicians that are progressive by nature. We’ve been able to invest in technology and ourselves and with some major organizations in the area to provide the best care for patients.”

Patients can expect the latest technology at Bond. The addition of an open MRI machine will allow the clinic to service both the overweight segment of the population and young children, who will be able to go through the machine with an adult guardian, thereby requiring less sedation. Other updates include the recent purchase of a six-slice CT scanner and the expansion of stress echo capabilities. A vascular lab is also in the works. “We’re certainly not sitting still,” King says.

Tracking patient satisfaction is a key piece of the overall performance puzzle. The clinic measures patient satisfaction both internally and with the assistance of outside agencies, and just signed a contract with a patient survey agency. “This survey system will help us formalize and track our level of patient satisfaction, which will help validate the quality of our service. I’ve always been a great believer of making the waves rather than following in someone else’s wake,” King says.

Upgrades and expansion

Four years ago, Bond Clinic began the process of updating its antiquated information systems, and has since spent approximately US$2million on the project, says King. “We went through four information technology conversions at the same time. We started with the lab and imaging. We converted to Orchard Software and the imaging was piggybacked onto a local technology group. We now have full digital imaging with the exception of mammography, which is coming very soon,” King says. Additionally, the research practice and management system was switched from an Misys platform to NextGen. The use of electronic medical records was implemented about a year and a half ago.

A second Winter Haven site approximately four blocks away from the 87,000-square foot main campus is also coming online. The 48,000-square foot addition will house the diabetes and endocrinology clinic, an infusion therapy center, the hematology and oncology department, and a full service, state-of-the-art women’s center. “It’s a renovation of the old Verizon building and can withstand winds in excess of category 4 hurricanes. We’re also creating a data infrastructure park to maintain our systems regardless of what happens,” says King, noting the work is being done by local contractors.

Employees and marketing

Bond Clinic’s staff physicians are encouraged to publish in their areas of expertise. The clinic also publishes a periodical, Perspectives, that is packed with information about clinic services, common medical conditions, and more.

“Our physicians are very well-educated and they are all board-certified or board-eligible. We encourage them to publish, and we publish Perspectives as a means of educating the public and letting the population know what we have to offer,” King says. “We’re always looking for well-educated, well-informed individuals to join our team, and we’re always looking to improve.”

As a means of marketing its services, the Bond Clinic immerses itself in the community. King is heavily involved with the local Chamber of Commerce and Main Street, and the staff volunteers with the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. The Clinic also holds an annual company-wide United Way fundraising campaign. “The clinic is committed to community involvement and giving, and that’s really the best marketing of all. That’s truly been our great strength,” King says.

Once on board at the clinic, employees are schooled in customer service and encouraged to attend seminars and to pursue ongoing education within their given professional discipline.

Perhaps the clinic’s website best sums up its focus and goals: “We believe that your entire experience, from the moment you enter Bond Clinic until you leave, defines the quality of our healthcare. The services below ensure your visit with us saves you time and are both convenient and enjoyable.”