In my last blog, I spoke about a recent trip I took to the Catskill Mountains in upstate New York. It was a great get away and allowed me to reminisce about the past and the great times I had in that area as a teen and young adult. The entire region recently felt the wrath of Hurricane Irene and experienced severe flooding. Much of this already economically depressed area was severely flooded. The rivers crested and spilled their banks and the raging water had in its grips trees, cars, portions of houses, barns and whatever else it found in its path.

Entire towns were destroyed and many bridges were washed out, further blocking access to these areas. Rebuilding, if it ever happens, will take years. I traveled through these areas with a heavy heart as I just couldn't fathom where the money to rebuild would come from. This area was hit hard in the recession and this was likely the death blow. A glimmer of hope arose when I approached one of my favorite stores. It was a convenience type store that gave you the feel of an old time General Store. It stood alone on the outskirts of town, nestled into the side of the mountain. It was old but had a very inviting porch and the necessary creaking wood floor. On any morning a group of aging local men would meet for coffee and pass the day away. The first thing I noticed which concerned me was the lack of people congregating.

As I entered, I could immediately see that this business was struggling. The shelves were all but empty. In fact the only stock was beer and cigarettes. The old coffee urns were filthy and in disrepair. I was confused until I started to remember back to my last trip through the area. It was getting to this point then, just not as bad as today. The owner had lost interest. He let the place go. Products were not restocked or were allowed to expire on the shelves. The coffee machine broke and was never repaired. There was no longer fresh produce. The feel of the country store was all but gone. This business was not a victim of the storm; it was a victim of the owner. As the shelves grew bare the customers moved on.

Don't let the struggle of the act of doing business on a daily basis get in the way of the basics. Keep your office neat and clean. Repair all of those annoying issues that patients will notice like the squeaky front door. Most of all, however, keep your services fresh and up-to-date. Offer a new service or two per year and buff up on new techniques for older services. Do this through a good deal of continuing education. People sense this and respond well to it.

Sit in each of your patient chairs and see your office through the eyes of the patient. Is that shelf dusty? Are the hand piece hoses clean? Heck, sit in the waiting room chairs and see what needs to be done there. These are high-impact items that cost little or nothing to rectify. Don't let patients just fade away because of a small issue with the infrastructure. In addition, keep your shelves stocked with services. You will do better if you supply almost all of your patients' needs in-house.

We endure so many storms in business. Some we weather easily and others give us more trouble. Those things are out of our control. We just learn to deal with them as best as possible. The things that we can control, like keeping our offices orderly and well-run, need to be dealt with immediately. Don't let the shelves go bare. Keep it fresh and friendly. Patients will respond to those subtle things and the rewards are a happy, healthy business which you look forward to every day.