“ We are the best !” Why we continue to fool ourselves Only 1 of 20 unhappy patients bother to complain. Others walk out of your clinic and tell ten others about their bad experience. slsmls.org

1. Hospital Hospitality
Ravi Kumudesh
MSc(SMgt)/BSc/Dip(MLT)
Sri Lanka Society for Medical Laboratory Science
slsmls.org
How
Delight
your Patient ??

2. Times are changing !

3. Who’s the most important
person in the clinic?
• Doctors ?
• Nurses ?
• MLT ?
• Receptionist ?
• Accountant ?

4. Put Patients First !

5. Medical
Practice

6. Traditional model
• Patient comes to
doctor
• Doctor makes
diagnosis
• Doctor treats
• Patient gets better
• Doctor is God

7. “ We are the best !”
Why we continue to fool ourselves
• Only 1 of 20 unhappy
patients bother to
complain.
• Others walk out of
your clinic and
tell ten others
about their
bad experience.

9. Today’s Health CareToday’s Health Care
SystemSystem
Patient
Health
Insurance
Government
Media
Doctor

10. The problem
• Unfortunately, while doctors are quite eager
to discuss medicine, most are unwilling to talk
about the nuts and bolts of practise
management
• Don’t want to enrich the competition by
giving away their “trade secrets” !
• We can learn together and help each other

11. Can you afford
not to put your patient first ?

12. Marketing
• Marketing is NOT a dirty word
• Professional servicers have always marketed
themselves
• Traditionally, it has been “word of mouth”
marketing
• This is still the best type, but it takes time. This
is most worthwhile investment of your time !

13. Happy patients
• Happy patients are loyal
• Refer other patients to your clinic
• Help your medical staff perform
better by providing professional
satisfaction
• Improve your income !

14. Build a Patient Service Culture
in your DNA
• Need to ensure your staff treats
your patients well
• Create magic with
–Right people
–Right processes
–Right environment

15. Staff – Our most valuable investment
• Employ the right people and pay
them well . Losing patients can be
expensive !
• Train them. Respect them.
Appreciate them
• Make sure your staff works well as a
team
• Do not shout at them
• Working in a hospital is
difficult. Help them to do their
best

16. Staff – your most valuable investment
• How well does your
staff treat your
patients ?
• If we treat your staff
well, they will treat our
patients well !

17. Create processes to improve work flow
• Follow flowcharts for improving work
flow!
• Need processes which the staff can follow
How to answer the phone
How to greet a new patient
How to help them fill up a form
Doctors Need more time and usually
create bottlenecks !

18. Clinic ambience
• Would you be happy sitting in your
waiting rooms ?
• Bathrooms should be spic and span
• Play patient education videos while your
patients are waiting
• Do not overbook - respect your patient’s
time

19. Invest in technology
– Automate processes
• Online appointment booking
• Reminder SMSes to reduce “noshows”
–Learn from dentists and vets !
–EMRs ( Electronic Medical Records)
• Email test results to patients !

20. Telephone etiquette
• How well is the phone answered ?
• This is your hospital’s public face !
–Answer phone within
3 rings
• Emails
• Mobile

21. Simple to do – but not easy !
• Need to understand your patient’s
wants, needs and desires
• We can learn a lot from 5 star hotels –
they put customers first
• Ask your patients for help !

22. Measure patient satisfaction !
“You get what you measure.”
• Comment cards
–It was easy to get an appointment.
–My doctor answered all my questions.
–I would recommend this hospital to friends.
• Telephone calls after their visit.
• Internet surveys by email
• Mystery patients

23. Don’t Miss judge
Don’t Misused
We are take pride in our
professional competence
Patients have no way of
judging this.
Some time assume all
are competent ! But ..?
Judge by their behavior

24. Bedside manners
•“The patient will never care
how much you know, until
they know how much you
care !”

25. The 10 Commandments
1. The patient is never an interruption, the
patient is your work. Everything else can
wait !
2. Greet every patient with a smile.
3. Call patients by their name.
4. For patients, all staff members are as
important as the doctor !
5. Never argue with a patient. Be a good
listener.

26. The 10 Commandments
1.Don’t say, "I don't know.” Say “ I will find
out”.
2.The patient pays your salary - treat him
like your boss !
3.Choose positive words
4.Always go the extra mile. Exceeding
patient expectations is the best way of
keeping patients happy !
5.Brighten every patient's day. This will
make your own life happier.

27. Dealing with unhappy patients
• Dissatisfaction = Mismatch between
Expectation and Reality
• Satisfied patients will tell three other people
• Dissatisfied patients will tell 20 others.
• However, if you can satisfy an unhappy
patient, he will tell at least 50 others, and
become your most valuable ally !

28. How to handle angry patients!
RAPSAND
• R = Re-establish rapport ( empathy)
• A = Agreement ( get the patient to say Yes)
• P = Problem ( define this)
• S = Solution
• A = Ask Permission ( is the patient happy with
the solution you have offered ?)
• N = Next step ( Follow up)
• D = Document

29. Commonest complaints
patients have about hospitals
• ??

30. Commonest complaints
patients have about hospitals
• Doctor did not explain properly
• Not enough time with the doctor
• Report Delay, Quality ???
• Unnecessary long wait time
• Billing mistakes
• Rude staff
• Lack of transparency about
costs

31. Bedside manner = empathy SOFTEN
S = Smile
O = Open posture
F = Forward lean
T = Touch
E = Eye contact
N = Nod

32. Secret
• Treat all patients as VIPs.
• Respect them !
• The lifetime value of a patient

33. What are the Action Steps ??

34. What are the Action Steps ??

35. Come to your clinic as a patient
• “ Mystery shopper”
• Helps you to think like a patient !
• Seeing things through the patient’s eyes
will make you more empathetic !
« Patient engagement, patient experience
and patient centeredness » are no longer
just buzzwords !

36. How does this matter ?
• Happy patients have better treatment
outcomes !
• More compliant because they are
engaged
• Fewer medical errors , because they
keep the medical staff alert
• Less likely to sue
• Happier patients heal better !

37. Our mission and purpose
To cure sometimes,
to relieve often,
to comfort always

38. Patients
come first!
• Everything else is
paperwork !
• Need to delight your
patients
• one patient at a time
Happy Patients = Happy Doctors, Happy Nurses, Happy Staff and a Happy CEO !

39. slsmls.org