The 20-patient audit: where your new patients really come from

A 10-minute exercise. No software needed.

Ask most doctors where their new patients come from and you'll get a confident answer. "Mostly GP referrals." "A lot from the panels." "Word of mouth, really."

Then ask them to count, and the answer often changes. I'd like you to count.

The 20-patient audit

Step 1. Pull your last 20 new patients. Not your regulars. The last 20 people who walked in for the first time.

Step 2. Tag each one with how they found you. Use four tags only:

• Referral: a GP or another specialist sent them.
• Panel: they chose you from their insurer's list.
• Direct: they found you themselves, through a search, your website or something you published.
• Word of mouth: a friend or family member told them about you.

If you don't know for a patient, ask your front desk, or check the registration form. If nobody asked, write "unknown". That's a finding too.

Step 3. Count the tags someone else controls. Referrals and panels depend on other people's decisions. A GP retires. A panel changes. A referral network shifts to a new colleague.

What your count tells you

If most of your 20 came through referrals and panels, you have what I call a Referral Ceiling. Your growth is capped by decisions you don't make.

If you have very few "direct" patients, you don't yet have a second front door: a way for the right patients to find you and book you themselves.

And if you have a lot of "unknown", start there. Add one question to your intake: "How did you hear about us?" In a month you'll have real numbers instead of a feeling.

What not to do next

Don't rush into ads. In Singapore, clinic advertising sits under MOH's Healthcare Services (Advertisement) Regulations, and many normal marketing moves are off the table. A second front door is built on plain, factual information that helps the right patient understand what you do. It's slower to set up and it lasts.

If you'd like a second pair of eyes on your count, book a Rainmaker Call at apply.theleverageadvantage.com/application. Bring your 20 tags. I'll turn them into a free one-page Second Front Door map within 2 working days.