Why do I need a website as a healthcare professional?

The Internet has profoundly changed patient habits. Today’s patients are more informed and connected than ever before. Most of them use search engines to obtain medical and non-medical information. For example, the majority of people looking for a medical appointment in Zurich might enter the keywords ‘doctor Zurich’ in a search engine, then select the most visible results.

Will your patients find your website? And is it attractive, up-to-date and of high enough quality to stand out from the other search results and give a professional impression?

 

What tools should I use to create a website?

Creating a website can seem time-consuming and expensive. The good news is that this doesn’t have to be the case. Today, there are a number of easy-to-use programmes that can be used to create a professional website for your practice. You can also entrust this task to a specialist agency, which represents a certain cost but guarantees a professional result.

 

How should a medical practice’s website be organised?

To create a user-friendly site, it is essential to have a clear structure. A medical practice website can have several functions:

• To provide information about your business and general information such as opening times, address, etc.
• Present your services and specialities, as well as news (e.g. COVID-19 measures).
• Facilitate communication with your patients: online appointment booking, contact details, etc.

 

1. The home page of your website

Your practice’s home page is the most important. It is therefore crucial to make it as clear as possible so that patients can easily find the key information.

1. Start by uploading an attractive, high-resolution image of your practice to the homepage, so that patients can immediately get an idea of where they will be treated.

2. Don’t hesitate to address your patients directly on the home page. A short, warm welcome message, such as ‘Welcome to Dr Mustermann’s practice’, immediately makes patients feel welcome.

3. Then briefly present the services you offer.

4. Finally, make sure that the essential information for your patients is clearly displayed on the home page:

• Practice address
• The telephone number
• The link for booking an appointment online

 

2. The services page

On the services page, list all your areas of specialisation and the services you offer, for example: general medicine, neurology, paediatrics, etc.

If necessary, each area can be linked to a separate page where you present in detail the specialty and the doctors who practise it in your practice. This is also a good opportunity to offer patients the chance to make an appointment directly with the member of the medical team of their choice.

 

3. Team presentation

It is also interesting and important to create a page dedicated to presenting the entire practice team (doctors, assistants, secretaries, etc.). This page helps to establish an initial bond of trust with patients.

By introducing the entire team, you highlight the human side of your practice and show that you value all your staff.

To highlight the expertise of the doctors working in your practice, you can also put their CVs and diplomas online.

 

4. The Blog page

A blog or news page allows you to inform your patients of the latest news about your practice or medical establishment. This could include the arrival of a new member of staff, an announcement about new opening times, or interesting articles related to your business.

The blog/news page helps to keep patients interested in practice life. You can also publish informative articles about your area of practice.

 

5. The contact page

Don’t forget to add a contact page, so that patients can quickly and easily find all the information they need to contact or locate you.

Your contact page should include the following information:

• Telephone number
• e-mail address
• Opening hours
• Link for booking an appointment online

 

Think about the visibility of your website

Your website should be simple and intuitive for your patients. In addition, it’s essential that it loads quickly on all devices, whether it’s a computer, tablet or mobile phone. You should also take care to avoid any loading problems or disruptive effects that might encourage patients to leave the site quickly.

If these aspects are respected, it will improve the visibility of your site in the various search engines.