Issue 6 - May 2004

Success File by Bob Levoy
Brickbats or bouquets Patient feedback helps your practice grow

It’s not how credible, competent or caring you and your staff are that determines patient satisfaction and practice growth. It’s how credible, competent and caring your patients think you are.

Sometimes there’s a disparity.

The purpose of marketing research is to identify those disparities. Market research helps you learn what you and your staff are doing right in your practice; what (if anything) you’re doing wrong; and what changes (if any) need to be made.

Trying to improve patient satisfaction and practice growth without patient feedback — is like trying to learn target shooting with a blindfold. It can’t be done.

In past columns, we’ve discussed different ways to obtain this vital patient feedback through patient satisfaction surveys; follow-up on patient defections; focus groups; and “no-holds-barred” staff meetings. Here’s another.

POST-APPOINTMENT TELEPHONE INTERVIEWS
This type of market research is typically done with 10 or 15 patients representing a cross-section of your practice, 2 to 3 days after their appointments. The interviews are most often done by an office manager and/or staff members on a rotating basis. The premise is not only to obtain patient feedback but also to sensitize staff members to the importance of patient satisfaction.

To expedite the interviews, have a staff member make advance arrangements with pre-selected patients at the conclusion of their visits. A suggested script is:

“Mrs. Carlson, we plan to call a few of the patients seen this week to ask about their experiences while being in our office. We’d very much like your opinion on this topic. Would you be willing to be interviewed for just a few minutes later this week, at any time that’s convenient to you?”

Most patients are agreeable, if not flattered, to be interviewed. Here are some questions you might want to ask these patients:

• “How did everything go during your appointment?”

• “Were all your questions answered?

• “Was there anything, big or small, that bothered you in any way?”

• “Is there anything we could have done to make your visit a more positive experience?”

• “If a friend were looking for a chiropractor, would you be comfortable in recommending our practice?”

An alternative to the post-appointment telephone interview is simply to have the receptionist ask patients as they are paying their bill, “How did everything go today?” When the CA asks the question, she or he should hold eye contact with the patient and look genuinely interested. Otherwise, the patient may not attach any importance to the question and simply say “fine.”

Regardless of what you hear — brickbats or bouquets — the feedback you obtain from such interviews will you identify hidden “blind spots” about your practice.

Tip: As in any interview, the more you draw the person out, the more you learn. Phrases such as “that’s interesting” and “tell me more about that” let patients know the interviewer is truly interested in what they have to say.

Ralph Waldo Emerson observed, “The field cannot be seen from within the field.” This sampling of market research techniques will enable you to get that all-important outside view of your practice through the eyes of others. Armed with this information, you and your staff will have a veritable blueprint to improve patient satisfaction and practice growth.

Bob Levoy is a seminar speaker and writer. He can be reached at 516-626-1353.