An ophthalmology website has two audiences who want different things: patients who were sent to you, and the referring office staff who send them. Most sites are written only for the patient.
Short answer
An ophthalmology website needs a referral page for other offices, a page that tells newly referred patients what happens before the first visit, pages for each surgeon, plain descriptions of the services, and clear location and parking details. The referral page is the one most practices forget.
A specialty practice often receives patients through other offices. A coordinator at a primary care or optometry office has a patient in front of them and needs to send a referral today. They will open your site to find how.
Give that person one page. Say how to send a referral, where to send records, which number to call about urgency, and who to ask for. Keep it short enough to read on a phone between calls. Staff tend to remember which practice made referring easy.
The patient was told to see you. They may not know why, what you do, or whether to bring anything. They search your name before the call, and what they read shapes the call they make.
A "before your first visit" page serves them. Say what the appointment usually involves in plain terms, how long to plan for, whether to arrange a ride, and what records to bring. Point to the office for anything specific to them. Our medical practice site guide covers the wider structure.
Do not tell a patient what their condition means or what treatment they will need. Say that the doctor will explain after the examination.
Specialty practices also run on paperwork: referral letters, prior records, medication lists and consent forms. List each form with a short line saying who fills it in and when. Offer it as a document readable on a phone, never a scanned image. Do not collect sensitive details through the website contact form. Send patients to your office's own secure route and say so.
Patients and referring offices both look up the surgeon by name. A page for each doctor should say where they practice, what areas they focus on, how to reach their scheduling team, and a photo that looks like the person who will walk in.
Training and affiliations belong there, stated exactly as they are. Check your licensing board's rules on how credentials and specialties may be described, because wording is regulated and differs by state. This is not legal or medical advice.
A page about a procedure can say what it is, who performs it, where it takes place and what the visit involves. It cannot say how well it works, how safe it is or how quickly someone will recover. Avoid comparison with other practices and words such as best, safest or advanced.
Specialty visits often involve dilated eyes, older patients and companions. So the location page matters more than it does for many trades. Say where to park, which entrance to use, which floor and whether the building has an elevator.
If you have several offices, give each its own page with its own phone number and hours. A single page listing everything makes patients guess. See multi-location sites for how that structure works.
These cost the front desk time and cost referring offices patience. Fix the first two before anything else.
Pick one referral letter your office received last month. Using only the site, try to find the fax number or portal, the forms it asks for and the records to send. Wherever you give up and would phone, the page has a gap.
Then read the patient pages with a letter in hand and no medical training. Replace or explain any term you stumble over in the same sentence.
Because referring offices often send patients and their staff look for instructions on your site. A clear page saves calls for both sides.
You can describe what a procedure is and what a visit involves. Check your licensing board's rules before saying anything about safety or results. This page is not legal or medical advice.
Yes. Patients and referring offices search by doctor name. State training and affiliations exactly as they are and add a real photo and scheduling details.
How long to allow, whether to bring a driver, what records and cards to bring, where to park, and who to call with questions. Leave the medical explanations for the appointment itself.
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