Every Urgent Care Touchpoint Is a Reputation Moment

How the best urgent care operators turn daily interactions into long-term loyalty
As heard on Dx: The Podcast

Urgent care has always been a fast-moving space, but the leaders reshaping it today aren’t just reacting to change. They’re driving it.

In Dx: The Podcast, hosted by Dr. Andrea Giamalva, we talk with urgent care’s most forward-thinking operators, clinicians, and entrepreneurs: people who are redefining how care is delivered, scaled, and experienced.

These are short conversations (10 minutes or less), but they’re packed with insights. Not buzzwords. Not fluff. Actual next steps.

One lesson that’s come through loud and clear from every episode:
Your reputation is built one interaction at a time.

From the moment a patient schedules a visit to the second they walk out — and every call, text, and referral in between — every single touchpoint shapes how your clinic is perceived.

Here’s how the best in the business turn everyday moments into long-term trust.

1. Patients don’t remember the diagnosis. They remember how they were treated

“Patients don’t know if we got the X-ray perfectly. But they remember if someone smiled.”
— Brent Kell, CEO, Valley Immediate Care (Dx: The Podcast, Ep 5)

Most patients don’t have the clinical background to evaluate your care plan. What they do remember is how long they waited. Whether the check-in process was confusing. Whether the staff was kind.

At Valley Immediate Care, Brent Kell’s team has restructured every part of the experience — from pre-visit texts to post-visit follow-ups — to ensure that every step feels intentional, respectful, and clear. Because the reality is, your operations are your brand.

✅ Pro tip: Want better reviews and repeat visits? Audit your journey like a consumer. Every moment is part of the reputation you’re building.

2. One bad moment can undo a dozen good ones

“Cultural trust isn’t built with signage — it’s built through connection.”
— Selena Gurley, VP of Accreditation, Fast Pace Health (Dx: The Podcast, Ep 3)

Patients often arrive with complex medical and social histories. Selena shared how one clinic struggled with low engagement until they got honest about cultural barriers. One trusted connection (a provider showing up at a local church) shifted the community’s perception, and volumes followed.

It’s a powerful reminder: a single point of friction — a tone-deaf comment, a provider mismatch, a cold front desk interaction — can damage years of brand equity.

✅ Pro tip: Empower staff to lead with empathy. Equip them with the context and training to meet patients where they are both literally and culturally.

3. Automation is only helpful if it feels human

“The best tech is invisible. It helps people without getting in the way.”
— Brian Schiff, CEO, FLIP (Dx: The Podcast, Ep 4)

If your phone tree makes patients press one five times, your brand just took a hit. Brian Schiff’s team at FLIP uses voice AI to reduce wait times, book visits, and escalate complex requests without making the patient feel like they’re talking to a robot.

More importantly, they’ve built in emotional cues that detect stress, frustration, or confusion so a human can step in when needed.

✅ Pro tip: Don’t confuse automation with abandonment. The best systems support your people and elevate your brand — even when no one’s watching.

4. Internal alignment shows up in external moments

“Quality depends on feedback — not just protocols.”
— Dr. Brian Cruz, CMO, Midwest Express (Dx: The Podcast, Ep 1)

Your patients won’t see your internal QA structure. But they’ll feel the difference when providers are confident, aligned, and consistent.

Midwest Express built a system of peer-to-peer chart reviews and shared metrics (like ED transfers) to identify where care delivery could improve and where coaching was needed. The result? More consistent experiences, better provider satisfaction, and a more trusted brand across all 50+ locations.

✅ Pro tip: If you want your patients to trust your brand, make sure your team trusts each other.

5. Retail expectations are now healthcare expectations

“We don’t get extra points for being healthcare. We have to be easy, welcoming, and connected.”
— Adam Braves, VP of Strategic Growth, Bon Secours Mercy Health (Dx: The Podcast, Ep 2)

In a post-COVID world, patients are savvy. They expect the same ease and clarity from your clinic that they get from Amazon or Target.

Adam Braves encourages leaders to embrace that retail mindset, not by diluting clinical care, but by making access and empathy non-negotiable. A tech-enabled check-in. A warm greeting. A visit that feels human, not transactional.

✅ Pro tip: If your patients feel like an inconvenience at any point, your brand is losing ground. Make ease and empathy part of every visit.

The bottom line:

You don’t need a billboard to build your brand — you need better touchpoints.

Every message, every minute in the waiting room, every referral, every smile… it all adds up. The clinics that win long-term loyalty are the ones that treat every one of those interactions like what it is:
A reputation moment.

Season Two Begins August 2025

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Hear directly from the urgent care leaders shaping what’s next — and walk away with ideas you can use right now.

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