TL;DR
For a traditional primary-care practice managing ongoing patient panels, ask operations which care team can accept new relationships while supporting existing access. Commission marketing for that verified scope. A vacant appointment is a scheduling observation; it is not the practice's authorization to expand a panel.
State the operating model before buying acquisition
This brief concerns a primary-care practice organizing continuing relationships around clinicians or care teams. It does not assume a membership offer, a uniform panel limit or a particular payment arrangement. Confirm the model with practice leadership before using the worksheet.
The AAFP's historical panel-management article distinguishes patients under a provider's care from the visits those patients generate. It provides management context rather than a current capacity benchmark for your practice. AAFP panel discussion.
PHMI's empanelment guide asks operational leaders to align new-patient slots with panel fullness. It was developed through a California partnership with community health centers and says its content can be adapted more broadly. Use that operational question where it fits; leave payment rules, panel calculations and clinical weighting with the practice. PHMI implementation guide.
The marketing recommendation here is an inference from that management distinction: require an approved relationship-capacity decision before buying a broad new-patient campaign. Neither source demonstrates that this purchasing method improves acquisition.
Give the agency a panel-to-campaign brief
Complete this original brief with approved operational summaries. Do not give the agency patient lists or ask it to calculate clinical workload.
| Scope field | Decision owned by the practice | What the agency may commission |
|---|---|---|
| Actual care team and office | Which team and location can receive the invitation | Accurate team and destination wording |
| Relationship capacity | Whether new relationships are currently supported and under what approved conditions | A bounded invitation matching that authorization |
| Continuing access | Whether existing-patient access and coverage leave the proposed scope supportable | A scope decision informed by operations, without private details |
| Intended action | What a prospective patient can actually request | Matching page, action label and acknowledgement |
| Approval responsibility | Who can release or change the campaign | An explicit instruction and revision route |
| Stop or change trigger | Which staffing, access or capacity change reopens the decision | A defined pause, narrowing or correction task |
| Next evidence review | What operating update the owner needs before continuing | A maintained scope record rather than automatic expansion |
The output can authorize a specific team's invitation while keeping another team's expansion pending. It can also reveal that no new-relationship campaign is currently supportable. A practice-wide calendar average cannot resolve those different decisions.
Separate the panel decision from the next available slot
If an open session belongs to temporary coverage for established patients, have operations explain whether it supports any new-relationship offer. If a team has approved relationship capacity but its public page sends requests elsewhere, commission the route repair within that scope. These are conditions to investigate, not assumed explanations for an empty calendar.
Preserve clinician preference and the practice's actual access process. Do not turn the brief into payer-based patient exclusion, clinical targeting or a promise of immediate appointments. Use the availability wording guide to make the authorized action understandable.
Price the approved scope and its changes
Request separate descriptions of initial fact gathering, page implementation, distribution and continuing maintenance. Fill in written quote ___; included team and office ___; change work included ___; pause terms ___; restart evidence ___. A smaller verified scope may require different work from a broad practice campaign; obtain the actual quote rather than assuming a discount.
Before launch, compare the invitation with the approved brief and have scheduling confirm that the request reaches the intended process. At the commercial review, ask whether that scope remains supportable and whether the agency completed the agreed work before authorizing expansion or continuation.
The AAFP's historical marketing-planning article treats staffing, implementation and evaluation as planning questions. It does not supply today's costs or a renewal interval. AAFP planning article.
Use the scope-budget guide for comparing written proposals. GetPatients has a commercial interest in healthcare visibility services; its work should satisfy the same panel authorization brief.
Frequently asked questions
Should the agency choose the ideal panel size?
No. Ask the practice's operational and clinical leadership for the approved capacity decision. This tool translates that decision into marketing scope without supplying a formula.
Can we market an open team while another team is full?
Consider a specific approved invitation if the actual care arrangement, continuing access and request process support it. Explain the available choice accurately.
Must all marketing stop when expansion is pending?
Commission a defined useful task, such as correcting current information, when appropriate. Distinguish that task from distributing an unsupported invitation to start a new relationship.