Take it to the BANK: Personality Typing for Clinical Success

Is your practice at the level that you want it to be? Are your patients getting all of the treatment that you know they need? In other words, are they following your treatment plan recommendations because they are motivated to? As you know, a healthy practice needs a steady flow of patient visits.

This can come from new patients completing a series of treatments, or from long-term relationships with patients you already have and who are sold on you. Success in treating and getting good results with chronic conditions requires time and if patients drop out too soon they won't get those results.

Learning Patient Communication Skills

How exactly did you learn to create good communication skills in a clinical and business setting? I have certainly taken a number of classes over the past four decades that were focused on patient communication. Part of that was integrated into classes at the Worsley Five Element School in Maryland — related not only to using Five Element Theory for communication with patients, but also introductions to neurolinguistics programming.

One of the more important processes I have integrated into my practice is called B.A.N.K. code personality typing. It is a type of "mirroring" and matching of my communication style to that of my patients — sort of like speaking their unique language. It helps me "speak to" the issues that they value the most.

Non-verbal communication is said to be 80 percent of all communication. How you non-verbally greet a person can also win them over with a good first impression as much as what you say. Should you be very serious and structured or do they respond best to laughter and fun? Do they make decisions quickly? Do they buy because you give them a "good deal?" If you don't know how they buy, and the "why they buy," then your ability to help them in your practice will be limited.

Here is how the B.A.N.K. code system can help — give the patient four cards, each with 12 values listed on them, as part of the intake. An example of the values are as follows: learning, expertise and accuracy. Next, have them prioritize the cards by how important each one is to them. And then apply what you learn about them to change how you communicate with them about their health and the treatment plan you determine is best for them.

You are probably thinking that you have done lots of personality typing exercises yourself. Or that you have used astrology to better figure out how to communicate and interact with others. Or you are an expert in DISC or the Enneagram. These are based on psychology. B.A.N.K. is based on "buyology" and was created by reverse engineering buying behaviors. It has even been studied in a rigorous academic setting and a whitepaper was been issued by San Francisco State University, stating that it predicts buying behavior.

B.A.N.K. stands for Blueprint, Action, Nurturing, and Knowledge. The way that these four buying behavior types are combined in one person strongly determines the success of your treatment plan being accepted. When you present in the wrong way, your chances of success are significantly lessened. When you present using this code language, the chances of a sale happening is greatly enhanced. And this applies no matter the person's language and the types are culturally universal.

Many clinics have appointment times scheduled for patients. Some are more strict about what happens if a patient arrives late. Some are more lax. But what about the patient? What are their preferences? That is sometimes a make or break factor. And if you have been in practice as long as I have you know what I mean.

The "Blueprint" (in the first position of priority) is often a stickler for being on time. In fact, they will typically arrive 10-20 minutes early. If you get them into the treatment room before their appointment time you have just spoken their language — but heaven forbid that you don't get them in on time and you don't let them know that you are running late. They may never come back because you didn't respect their values.

The "Action" is in a hurry. They may often show up just at the last minute or even late. You had better be clear about this in advance, particularly if you are a "Blueprint." Because you will get upset with them for not being there on time, and they really are not that concerned about being on time unless you are really clear about why they have to be on time. Also, don't spend a lot of detail on explaining the treatment plan to them. Just cover it executive summary style and compliment them on their clothes or fancy new car.

The "Nurturing" is all about the relationship or helping others. Make sure that you keep track of what is going on in their life with people, family, friends. Ask every time they come in. Make sure that you establish eye contact for a prolonged period of time. They have to know that they can trust you personally or they won't buy what you say or recommend.

The "Knowledge" is all about learning and the big picture. Anticipate that they will want a lot of information and explanation. They also will know more about anything than you do. Don't give them things that are misspelled. If you have an extensive report of findings that you go through in detail with them it is more likely that they will go along with the plan. But don't do this with the action. That would be a deal killer.

These are some tips I have learned from my own practice. I have used this system the last four years in my practice and these are the tip of the iceberg as to how B.A.N.K. personality coding can significantly help you improve your results with patients.