Is Your Hospital ETDBW?

Why ‘Easy to Do Business With (ETDBW)’ is the New Competitive Advantage in Outpatient Growth

Outpatient services are now the fastest-growing portion of hospital revenue¹. From imaging and lab work to physical therapy and specialty consults, the shift from inpatient to outpatient care is accelerating.

Every hospital wants to leverage that growth. Every CEO and CFO wants to capture more provider referrals. But there’s a catch: to win those referrals, your organization must be ETDBW – easy to do business with.

The Problem: Referral Leakage Is Real (and Expensive)

It’s not just about having great physicians or advanced facilities. If a referring provider finds your process cumbersome, they’ll simply send their patients elsewhere.

In fact, studies show that 63% of physicians are unhappy with the hospital referral process, and when that frustration builds, referral leakage follows. That means missed appointments, lost orders, and unclaimed revenue.

Here’s what that looks like on the ground:

• Orders get faxed… and then lost.
• Schedulers are left guessing.
• Providers don’t get confirmation when their patients are booked.
• Patients show up for service, only to hear, ‘We never received your order.’

Sound familiar? It’s not just a workflow problem – it’s a revenue problem. Every unscheduled order represents potential income that quietly slips away.

The Question: Are You Tracking What’s Left on the Table?

Most hospitals can’t easily answer questions like:

• How many faxed orders never make it to scheduling?
• How much revenue is lost due to missing or incomplete referrals?
• Are referring providers kept in the loop when orders are scheduled?

If the answer is ‘we’re not sure,’ then your organization might be losing more than you think.

The Solution: PatientPath™ Makes Hospitals ETDBW

PatientPath™ helps hospitals and health systems capture every referral, turning faxed orders into billable encounters.

Here’s how it works:

• Capture & Catalog: Faxed orders are automatically received, organized, and validated.
• Notify & Confirm: Referring providers are notified when appointments are scheduled (or if an order is missing information).
• Track & Report: Hospitals can finally measure referral conversion and see exactly how much revenue is being recovered.

The result? Providers trust your process. Patients experience smoother care transitions, and your outpatient revenue grows.

The Takeaway: Being ETDBW Is the New Growth Strategy

Imagine a provider referring a patient to your hospital and saying afterward, “That was easy.”

That’s not just good customer service – it’s a competitive edge.

In a world where outpatient revenue drives hospital growth, being easy to do business with isn’t optional. It’s strategic. And PatientPath is helping hospitals get there, one referral at a time.

Connect with us to learn how your facility can be easy to do business with!

¹Becker’s Hospital Review, October 2025