5 Proven Patient Retention Strategies for Primary Care

"One of my most successful retention strategies has been investing time to understand my patients' lifestyles. A patient with high blood pressure came in for a follow-up, but their numbers weren't improving. I asked more in-depth questions about their daily routine and discovered they were working long hours with little time to prepare healthy meals, which was contributing to their struggles. Based on that, I offered more actionable advice like prepping meals for the week and incorporating short stress-relief exercises into their busy day.

This adjustment wasn't just about prescribing medication but finding a solution that fit their life. Over the next few months, their blood pressure improved, and they became more engaged in managing their health. This kind of personalized care has made patients feel like I'm invested in their long-term success, not just the immediate issue. It's built stronger connections and helped with retention, as patients appreciate when their needs are truly understood and addressed."

- Shawn George, Internal Medicine Physician Yorktown Health Vernon Hills

"I tailor all educational content - emails, handouts, and social media - to reflect the specific needs of my patient population, which includes individuals navigating infertility, hormone imbalance, and chronic metabolic issues. By addressing their real-life experiences, concerns, and goals, I've found that patients feel seen and understood even before their first appointment. This level of personalization has consistently improved both conversion and retention rates.

Strong patient-provider relationships are the foundation of my care model. I spend 45 to 90 minutes with each patient, listening deeply and building therapeutic rapport. Patients often share that they've never felt so heard. This has led to greater follow-through, increased referrals, and patients staying with me through various life transitions - from preconception to postpartum to perimenopause.

Using functional lab testing, individualized treatment plans, and a root-cause approach, I offer care that goes beyond symptom management. Patients can feel the difference in their overall well-being - and that's what keeps them coming back.

Between visits, I keep patients engaged through curated Fullscript supplement protocols and direct communication support, which help them stay accountable and connected to their health goals over time.

These strategies have helped me build a thriving, referral-driven virtual practice grounded in patient loyalty and trust. Patients don't just seek support for one issue - they continue working with me because they know they're receiving personalized, whole-person care."

- Rosia Parrish, Naturopathic Doctor Naturopathic Wellness Center of Boulder

"In my practice of bariatric and osteopathic medicine, it became clear to me how crucial it is to implement ongoing patient engagement strategies and how much communication mattered, not only to retention but also to outcomes. I organized a multi-touchpoint system that included in-person visits alongside engagements via a tailored patient portal and automated check-ins. For our post-bariatric surgery patients, this means weekly nutrition surveys, monthly body composition tracking, and quarterly osteopathic evaluations.

Simply put, data never lies in our case - with a practice analysis for 2023 showing a 72% improvement in 12-month follow-up compliance with expanded EHR screens versus traditional care models. Patients in this engaged care pathway achieved 43% more excess weight loss at the study time point than those who received standard follow-up care (two years post-randomization; P<0.01). Continuing this therapeutic continuity outside of the exam room embodies the osteopathic principle of treating the whole person.

The power of continued engagement is even more telling on the outcomes in half to three-quarters of our patients who are diabetic. When coupling scheduled touchpoints with osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) as part of a regular diabetes management routine, we've experienced a 31% greater drop in HbA1c levels compared to medication management alone. Our practice monitors' engagement scores' generated from portal activity, survey completion, and appointment adherence - and we know patients in the top quartile for engagement, on average, experience 58% fewer hospital readmissions.

This has also led to no-show rates plunging from 28% to 9% over three years. What started as a retention strategy has become one of the foundational elements of our practice philosophy - consistent, meaningful engagement not only keeps patients returning, it fundamentally and measurably improves their health trajectories."

- Kevin Huffman, Doctor of Osteopathic Med | Bariatric Physician | CEO & Founder Ambari Nutrition

"Patient feedback has been game-changing for us, especially our post-visit surveys that helped us identify that waiting times were a major pain point. I started blocking 15-minute buffer zones between appointments and added a patient portal messaging system, which reduced our no-show rate from 18% to just 6%. Honestly, just taking the time to personally call patients who have missed appointments has made a huge difference in maintaining consistent care relationships."

- Dr. Edward Espinosa, Owner OptumMD

"We implemented a strategy focused exclusively on patient satisfaction. This is for our clients who are Mental Health telemedicine experts. Below are the steps we implemented that indeed increased patient retention, especially focusing on those who don't show up for post-consultation.

Mental health is not a one-time consultation and requires at least 6 to 7 calls with the provider to get to the bottom of the issue, address it, and solve it.

For this, we set up internal systems for them that would empower them to respond immediately after form submissions. The personalized app we built enabled the client to contact the lead immediately and schedule the appointment. This was a huge win, and they are now able to close at least 30+ leads every month. This closure rate was gradual and spanned over six months since we onboarded the client.

Apart from that, the obvious non-negotiable was exceptional care provided to the customers, especially this being a mental health niche. This made them come back and keep up further appointments until their issue is resolved.

We also set up an automation which sends the feedback link to the patients who completed their treatment. We are asking for feedback on their entire consultation journey. If a patient is not satisfied, it redirects them to a different form asking what their concerns are, and eventually gives clients the opportunity to address these issues. This helped to maintain positive online feedback.

We then implemented a CRM which helped them maintain patient engagement by sending timely reminders of their appointments. It also kept the data clean. All of these strategies proved to be very effective, and they are now closing 50+ patients a month with all the combined efforts."

- Paranjyothi Sripada, Director of Digital Strategy Orange Carrot