Check out shoe sales and surgery in one trip
Laser eye surgery finds nontraditional home
Window shopping takes on a whole new meaning for some mall shoppers who visit Herndon, VA-based Visual Freedom Center’s various locations in upscale malls. As part of the company’s effort to demonstrate the ease, comfort, and safety of laser vision correction, one wall of the procedure rooms are glass so that the procedure can be viewed.
"It is very reassuring to someone who is considering the procedure to see a patient get out of the chair smiling after refractive surgery," says Myles B. Weiner, CEO of Visual Freedom Center.
A curtain can be closed if the patient does not want spectators, but Weiner says that 70% of the patients choose to keep the curtain open. "Many times friends or family members who accompany the patient want to watch the procedure, he says. "Also, many patients watched the procedure prior to undergoing it themselves, so they know how it helps relieve anxiety."
In addition to building a glass-walled procedure room, Visual Freedom Center’s decision to place locations in shopping malls is a very different approach to laser eye surgery. "When we put together our business plan, we recognized the fact that few patients who seek refractive laser surgery to correct their vision have a pre-existing relationship with an ophthalmologist who performs the surgery," says Weiner. Because the personal relationship doesn’t exist, the most important aspect of attracting patients is quality education and easy access, he explains.
Visual Freedom Center addressed the easy access issue by placing facilities in shopping malls in four cities: Fairfax, VA; Columbia, MD; Gaithersburg, MD; and Schaumburg, IL.
"The benefits of a mall location are great visibility and convenience," says Weiner. "Our stores give people a chance to learn about laser refractive surgery in an attractive, comfortable location in a place that they enjoy visiting."
Customers can pick up brochures, view videos, talk with staff about their options to correct vision, and undergo a free evaluation to see if they are good candidates for the procedure in one simple visit, says Weiner. (See story on corrective options, p. 93.)
Pick site that fits target market
Educating walk-by traffic is also a key component of the Michelson Laser Vision Center in Birmingham, AL. "While the Michelson Center is not at a traditional mall, the shopping center is in a high-income area that is demographically suited to our target market," says Marc A. Michelson, MD. "Although it is an open mall, the anchor stores are Saks Fifth Avenue, Restora-tion Hardware, The Gap, and other quality retailers that are found in traditional malls."
Location in an upscale, upper-income neighborhood is important because refractive laser surgery is generally not reimbursed by third-party payers, says Weiner.
Because the procedure is usually not reimbursed, licensure as a surgery center is not required in his state, says Michelson. "We don’t accept insurance for the procedure, nor do we file insurance claims," he says.
Refractive surgery patients are healthy, and the lack of anesthesia and blood in the procedure means that emergency preparedness is simple, says Weiner. "We do keep emergency kits to handle any unusual reactions patient may have to the topical anesthetic, our staff are all CPR-trained; surgeons performing the procedures are MDs; and we abide by all OSHA standards that apply to medical practices," he explains.
Placing your center in a mall can present some challenges not found in a typical health care location. "Our mall requires us to be open during mall hours, which run seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.," says Weiner. Meeting the high service expectations of retail customers also means that you can’t use a skeletal staff, so salary expense is higher, he adds.
Also expect to pay higher rental costs and higher buildout costs as a result of retail space prices and the need for almost twice as much space as traditional clinical settings, says Weiner. (See story on costs, at right.)
One of the obstacles a surgery center has to overcome when locating in a retail setting is a negative image, says Weiner. "People don’t associate quality medical care with a mall location."
Visual Freedom Center is addressing quality in several ways, he adds. "We only invite three or four physicians who have a great deal of experience with this procedure to operate in our center," he says.
"We are able to monitor outcomes closely since follow-up exams are conducted in our center," he adds. This differs from typical same-day surgery programs in which patients go to the physician’s office for follow-up. "Control of this data enables us to spot potential problems such as an improperly calibrated laser earlier than most centers," Weiner says.
Michelson has not experienced any negative reaction to a retail location; in fact, his experience is positive. "A number of patients who were evaluated for the procedure prior to our retail location opening chose to delay their surgery so they could go to the new location because it was more convenient," he says.
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