Why Customer Service in Healthcare Today

Consumerism has found its way in to healthcare establishments, too. People expect the same convenience and service they get at retail shops - but with one big difference: because their lives are literally on the line, people tend to be harder on healthcare facilities than they are on random retail businesses.  

With access to information, people know exactly what they want when they enter your practice. If you don’t deliver, you risk losing valuable business. Here are a few reasons why you need to up your game when it comes to customer service. 

Patients are the Customer

 Your patients are your customers and your healthcare organization is relentlessly competing with other providers in the market. So, customer service matters.  

Therefore, the best thing you can do for patients is to offer them a well-planned treatment course and provide them with the most pleasant experience while doing so. Because if a staff member or provider is rude or unhelpful, patients often have a choice of finding someone else and somewhere else to spend their money.

Good service is how you achieve higher patient retention rates

The biggest question in healthcare is: how do you get patients to come back? And the answer, it turns out, is that high patient satisfaction scores correlate with high patient retention rates. 

Most patients will not leave a provider once established with care, because finding a new clinic is exhausting. So, the ones that leave, leave for a valid reason. In other words, they leave because they are not happy with your service. So, if you care about retention, then it is important to know why patients leave your practice. And you will be surprised to know how often it is due to poor customer service. 

Patients spend more in services with you only when they are happy with you

 A patient who is happy with you will spend significantly more at your clinic than a patient who is not. That’s how long-term patient-clinic relationships are formed. Therefore, medical clinics today are increasingly leveling up their customer service. They know that if their patients don't trust them, they won't come back. And if they don't come back, they can't become loyal, paying customers. 

Having said that, satisfaction with your organization affects more than just the amount patients pay; it can affect their experience. A patient who has a good experience at your clinic will probably tell others about it. And word-of-mouth recommendations have a powerful voice. They can make a huge impact on your bottom line, which can also help you improve your practice’s financial position. 

Patients review your services and your prospects make their decision based on them 

The ratings of healthcare practices on reviewing sites, such as Healthgrades, Google, Yelp, and others holds a big influence on how patients see doctors today.  

A patient who sees poor ratings is likely to disregard a practice and remove it from their shortlist - regardless of how qualified the doctors are. But a clinic with decent doctors but good customer ratings stands a chance to get more patients and better recognition in its field.

In addition, when you make your existing patients happy, you not only persuade them to spend more money on your services but also encourage them to leave positive feedback for you on online platforms. Since testimonials help establish credibility and trust, your prospects are more likely to choose you over your competitors if your existing patients approve of your organization. 

Poor customer service means there are fundamental problems in your clinic

If a patient comes to your clinic, is annoyed, and says so, it is natural to worry that the complaint is unjustified. Maybe they are just having a bad day…

But more often than not, the complaint is justified. The reason is simple - very few people actually make the effort of complaining when they face a small issue. 

Perhaps you are having work flow issues, your equipment isn’t performing well or maybe your employees aren’t doing their jobs properly or has a bad disposition. 

The best plan of action to improve your customer service is to take a look at your foundation. You are likely to get insights like no other. Start at the very beginning of your value chain: perhaps there is something wrong with the helpdesk? 

Monitor the calls or supervise some of the interactions that your helpdesk staff have with the patients might give you the answer. Then, move on to the next team, your front desk staff, the check in process and work through all departments.

Remember that making concrete changes in your customer service is a time-consuming and often difficult process. You will be required to pay attention to the littlest things. But the rewards on the other side will make it worth your effort. 

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To create something exceptional, your mindset must be relentlessly focused on the smallest detail!

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