Three Qualities Your Medical Practice Can't Be Without

Running a medical practice is quite unlike almost any other kind of business you could be involved in. In an ideal world, you wouldn’t be needed, and repeat customers would be something you actively discourage. Similarly, for the people who use your service – even if you give absolutely premium-level assistance to them – it’s going to be hard to be enthusiastic about their visit to the doctor, because they’d rather just not be ill.

But this is not an ideal world, and people do need to see a doctor every so often, so it is of vital importance to make sure that their experience under your care is as positive as can be, and that they leave there with hope. This is something you can affect, so it is vital to ensure your medical practice hits the mark on all the following fronts…

Efficiency

Sitting in a waiting room is never the most enjoyable way to pass the time, even at the best of times, and when you’re not feeling your best it’s less enjoyable still. You can do as much as you like to make the experience more soothing – providing drinking water, reading material and potentially a TV on low volume – but primarily, patients want to show up, be seen, and be out of there as soon as possible. A combination of attentive reception staff and effective practice management software can ensure that you get people checked in and through to their appointment in a short time without them feeling rushed.

Communication

It could be said that there is only one thing worse than receiving a call from your doctor, and that’s not getting one when you were led to expect it. Medical issues can cause a patient to expect or imagine the worst, and when they are left with room in their head to wonder, those gaps naturally fill with negative speculation. So when a customer or patient is promised a call by a certain time, they must receive it. Even if you have no new information, a courtesy call informing them of the situation and answering any questions they may have is the least they should expect. Any medical practice should ensure there are enough staff to ensure these calls are not missed.

Respect

When you practise medicine at a sufficiently high level to make a difference to a patient’s outcomes, it is in many ways indistinguishable from magic. With that said, it is never a good idea for a doctor to assume that a patient is not also well-informed. It’s equally a bad idea if reception staff are dismissive of a patient’s concerns. All medical facilities should seek to collaborate with engaged patients in a respectful way, hearing them out if they have their own opinions on treatment options. Even if it is mainly to explain why an option is unworkable, presenting them with facts and differentials is better than cold dismissal. A patient who feels they are not being listened to is less likely to follow a decided protocol.

Medical practices are not like other businesses, but the fact that patients are there because they have to be and not because they want to be doesn’t make it less important to prioritize their comfort and sense of ease. Quite the opposite, in fact.