Next, online reviews track more than just a patient’s subjective impressions about their experience – for example, did the doctor communicate well, was his bedside manner adequate, how long did the patient have to wait for an appointment, etc… Our group was the first to survey and connect online reputation with patient safety and quality of care. Segal J, Sacopulos M, Sheets V, Thurston I, Brooks K, Puccia R Online Doctor Reviews: Do They Track Surgeon Volume, a Proxy for Quality of Care? J Med Internet Res 2012;14(2):e50. So, now there is empiric data suggesting online reputation is helpful in guiding patients on metrics that mattered the most.
If you are the only provider for a 100 mile radius, you can probably ignore online reviews. For everyone else, your livelihood will increasingly depend on it.
*Pew Research Center, Pew Internet & American Life Project
Also, the public understands you cannot make 100% of patients happy 100% of the time. Even the highest performing practices receive inevitable negative reviews. The public also believes that an occasional negative review in sea of mostly positive reviews appears more authentic and credible than 100% positive reviews. While a negative review can be dispiriting, how you handle such feedback says infinitely more about your practice than the fact that a patient perceives you dropped the ball.