How do you respond to negative online reviews, particularly considering HIPAA rules?

I know it's not always possible to have 100% happy clients. But what can you do when a blatantly false review pops up? Without getting into too much detail about the specific client, basically in reality the client requested a prescription that we collected insurance information for. When the insurance denied payment, she accused our staff of fraud and identity theft to get out of paying for anything. We apologized, returned her money, and wrote off the charges on our end, but that didn't stop her from writing a negative review. Would responding to her review without naming the client or identifying the person still be considered a HIPAA violation?

As reviews start popping up on Yelp, Citysearch, Yahoo and Google Local, it is becoming increasingly important to monitor these sites. While we strive to satisfy every client, it isn't always possible for any number of reasons, but how do we keep the scales fairly balanced? Any ideas?

This is of course a common problem in all fields of medicine and unfortunately I don't think there is anything to make it fair.
I had one bad review on the internet 7 years ago and it took about 4 years for it to disappear. In this day and age anyone can rate you like a restaurant with bad food. Everything is being rated these days and unfortunately the ones who are doing the rating are the ones who should probably stay off the internet. Each site has its own rules about libel but people have a right to post their interpretation of the truth. The only way to make them answer is to sue them and to prove that what they said is not true. Who has time for that?

I was reviewing a local landscaper a few weeks ago that went over and beyond the call of duty. As I was reading other glowing reviews, there was an ugly one that popped up where the reviewer claimed his staff didn't return calls, rude to her, charged too much, etc... The owner responded back very eloquently. He basically took the response as an opportunity to explain how many years he had been in business and how his over-commitment to his clients was worth the extra money. It read as a mission statement. He also explained how much that comment had upset him and that he was going to talk with his staff about any possible rude behavior. I was so impressed with his response and had even more respect for his company after the bad review. In my opinion, the landscapers response just made the writer look bad!

I admit I have looked up some of our competitors for any negative responses. One in particular has a clinic with the reputation around town as a "one stop chop shop." Her liposuction clinic has about 4 well deserved negative reviews. She responded to these reviews with extreme defensiveness and was condescending to the writers. I know she must have been angry to read the reviews, but she came across as rude and egotistical. So I guess it's the way you handle the review. If you treat the negative reviewer with a bit of respect and use your response as a bit of a marketing opportunity to explain how you treat your patients, how your clinic is different than the others, etc.. the reader will make his/her own conclusions and will most likely side with you.

Hey, if you want to practice your response, just type it out here and I will tell you what I think as an objective third party. I am very opinionated and can help edit (have a Master's in Literature)

-Wendy

The issue of accountability is an important one as well as internet defamation. I, myself have retained Medical Justice, www.medicaljustice.com as a proactive approach. I have not had any negative responses and to be quite honest I am not really certain what it is that they do and do not claim to be an expert in the matter.

What I DO know is that for myself as well as my staff they have given me peace of mind and if there is an issue or a question they have been available for guidance in terms of issues such as the one posed. The question as I read it is how to respond to an anonymous poster while assuring compliance with all federal, state and local regulations. At least for federal statutes and regulations I feel confident that the medical justice staff can help and you may even get the information you need from their website. I have listed my name and the e-mail address of the office adminitrator if you request further information in terms of a reference. Although after reading information on the website it seems that you can respond to "anonymous", I am not an attorney and can not give you legal guidance.