Patients don’t expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong.
In the context of patient service, “conflict resolution” is nothing more than realizing you have a responsibility to understand and deal with your patient’s problem.
There is an art to patient service recovery. The word “recovery” means to return to normal – to get things back in balance.
Problems exist when the patient says they do, anytime a patient is upset, dismayed, angered or disappointed. What constitutes a disappointment for one patient can be absolutely “no problem” for another. No matter. You can’t wish a problem away because it is something no reasonable person would be upset about, or because it isn’t your fault, or it is not your doctors’ fault, or even because the patient made the mistake. If the patient thinks it is a problem, it’s a PROBLEM.
Being a Fantastic Fixer involves taking thoughtful positive actions that will lead a disappointed patient back to a state of satisfaction with you and your doctor. Healing injured patient feelings requires sensitivity to their needs, wants, and expectations.
Once the problem is identified, there are six steps you can use to fix the problem. NOT ALL PROBLEMS REQUIRE EACH OF THESE STEPS.
1. Apologize. It does not matter who is a fault. Patients want someone to acknowledge that a problem occurred and show concern for their disappointment. Saying “I am sorry that you have been inconvenienced this way” does not cost a dime, but it buys a barrel of forgiveness.
2. Listen and empathize. Treat your patients in a way that shows you care about them as well as their problem. People have feelings and emotions. They want the personal side of the transaction acknowledged.
3. Fix the problem quickly and fairly. A “fair fix” is one that is delivered with a sense of professional concern. At the bottom line, patients want what they expected to receive in the first place, and the sooner the better.
4. Offer atonement. It is not uncommon for dissatisfied patients to feel injured or put out by a service breakdown. Often, they will look to you to provide some value-added gesture that says, in a manner appropriate to the problem, “I want to make it up to you.” Starbucks or some other gift cards work great for this.
5. Keep your promises. Service recovery is needed because a patient believes a service promise has been broken. Orthotics are not right, a call back for benefits check has not occurred as promised, or some other promise that was not done. During the recovery process, you will often need to make new promises. When you do, be realistic about what you can and cannot deliver.
6. Follow-up. Make sure things really were resolved to your patient’s satisfaction. Do not assume you have fixed the person or the problem. Check to be sure.
Remember we are all just humans trying to get along and provide great service for our patients. This takes time, effort and thoughtfulness. Provide group training for the entire staff on this subject because it can either make or break your desire to serve your patients at the highest level. If you would like an in-office virtual training on this topic, just email me at [email protected].
