Every year the schedule goes soft, everyone panics, and then it fills back up — like summer is some kind of surprise.

Andrea Watkins and patient care coordinator Alli Petriella break down how to see the slow stretches coming: pulling several years of historical data, tracking surgery-hour utilization and revenue, and reading the lifestyle and regional patterns that decide when your patients actually book.
Here’s how to talk about a soft month with your team without spreading panic, how to use your CRM to re-engage the leads you already have, and why giving patients three good reasons to book in any month keeps the calendar full year-round.

Questions answered by this episode

1. Why do aesthetic practices slow down in the summer?
2. How do you fill open surgery slots during a slow season?
3. What is surgery hour utilization and how do you track it?
4. How do you use historical data to predict slow months in a practice?
5. How should a patient care coordinator handle a slow schedule?
6. What is the best time of year to have plastic surgery?
7. How do you re-engage patients who didn't book because of price?
8. How can a CRM help fill a plastic surgery schedule?
9. How do you talk to your team about a slow month without causing panic?
10. Do patient payment plans help convert leads lost to price?

Alli Petriella
Patient Care Coordinator, Steven Camp, MD Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics

Alli Petriella is a patient care coordinator at Steven Camp, MD Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics, with more than a decade of experience helping aesthetic and healthcare practices grow through smarter process and technology. She recently moved back inside the practice to guide patients through their surgical journey and rebuild the intake process from the front line. On the phones and in team huddles, she's the coordinator who treats a soft schedule as a problem to solve, not a season to survive.

Connect with Alli on LinkedIn
Learn more about Steven Camp, MD Plastic Surgery & Aesthetics

Practiceland is presented by PatientFi — the patient financing partner built for aesthetic practices. PatientFi gives your patients access to flexible payment plans and gives your team the tools to offer financing confidently, without the awkward money conversation.

Learn more at patientfi.com/aesthetics

SHE DID WHAT?
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HOST
Andrea Watkins, VP of Practice Growth at Studio III Marketing

Andrea Watkins, Vice President of Practice Growth at Studio 3, coaches plastic surgery and aesthetics teams on patient acquisition, lead management, and practice efficiency to drive measurable growth. Formerly COO of a multi-million-dollar practice that nearly tripled revenue under her leadership, she now partners with over 100 practices nationwide—helping them capture and analyze data, streamline consultations and booking, and align staff training with business goals. With a directive yet approachable, non-salesy style, Andrea turns data into action, empowering practices to boost conversions, maximize marketing, and elevate the patient experience in a competitive market.

Learn more about Studio III Marketing and LeadLoop CRM for plastic surgery practices and medical spas.

Host: Andrea Watkins
Producer: Eva Sheie @ The Axis
Assistant Producer: Mary Ellen Clarkson
Engineering: Chris Mann
Theme music: Full Time Job, Mindme
Cover Art: Dan Childs

Practiceland is a production of The Axis: theaxis.io