Dr. Clemens Esche – 2014 & 2015 USA National Award Winner in Dermatology

Let me first congratulate you on being the national winner of the Doctors’ Choice Awards in Dermatology 2014! This is quite the honor, how do you feel about winning the award?
It feels great and it means a lot to me, since the best judges of my work are my patients and my referral sources. I would like to thank everyone who voted for me.

What made you decide to participate in the Doctors’ Choice Awards?
I was invited by a manager in Doctors’ Choice Awards who came across my profile at Linkedin.

Has your participation benefitted you and your practice?
Absolutely! This award lifts our spirits on a daily basis and we know we are doing many things right.

What advice would you give to potential nominees about the Doctors’ Choice Awards?
Love what you do and it will be great.

This is one of many awards and honors you have received. What do you believe sets you and your practice apart?
Our trademark is our personalized service.

It is often said that the true secret to success is offering value. What do your patients consider the most valuable aspect of your practice?
I guarantee same weekday appointments to every patient, in addition we offer extended evening hours to make sure that nobody ever has to miss work or school.

You have an impressive international education background. What advice do you give aspiring physicians regarding education?
Decide as early as possible what you really want to do. I decided at the age of 18 that I will become a dermatologist. At that time I met my mentor Dr. Dr. Gerd Klaus Steigleder in Cologne in Germany and he started to invite me to dermatology conferences and since then, so for thirty years now, I focus on dermatology.

What advice would you give other doctors about the importance of business planning and thinking ahead?
Watch Shark Tank in ABC. Many of the best episodes are available on YouTube.

Running a highly successful and respected dermatology practice such as yours must take considerable leadership skills. What three leadership techniques do you think are most important in a medical practice?

1. Function as a role model on everyday basis.
2. Promote teamwork. Teamwork always creates synergy and synergy will give us more a pleasant office atmosphere and these results in happier patients.
3. Appreciate your employees and reward them for a job well done. The most available practice management book I’m aware of is Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Another book I would like to recommend is the book on how to manage ourselves by the same author; it’s the book on “How to Stop Worrying and Start Living.” And the third book that’s highly valuable, it’s the POWER of positive thinking. We are all the results of our own thoughts. Let me repeat that, we are all the results of our own thoughts, which actually means that if we wake up in the morning and decide to be happy that we will be happy that day. It is unbelievably powerful.

What do you think is the greatest challenge facing dermatologists today?
Probably the many issues surrounding the presence of health insurance companies. I’m currently spending half of my time with some type of useless paperwork and I would rather prefer to spend this time taking care of my patients.

Do you think collaboration and networking among physicians through services and programs such as Doctors’ Choice Awards play an important role in the success of the modern medical professional?
Absolutely! Teamwork always generates synergy and everyone benefits.

What’s next for your practice? Are you considering any expansions, new services, or new staff?
A new service that we will start soon is Tele-dermatology… so the remote delivery of dermatologic services via telecommunication devices. In other words, patients can stay at home during the office visits. And another issue is direct patient care, also called concierge medicine, this is one of the fastest growing trends in the United States in medicine at this point and it partially cuts out health insurances. We still accept health insurance for leg work or pathology and to charge a retainer fee that allows the patient to have 24/7 access to us, and there will never be a wait time. The patient has our cell number and our email, can call us at night. We are available during the weekends. We can basically do what our colleagues did 50 years ago before the business people of health insurances partially ruined our relationship with our patients.