Quality customer service can be boiled down to a few simple virtues. Most industries, most companies within discrete industries, beg to differ and offer reams of prose on their version of the topic. Most of the writing is self justification for mistakes they continue to make and opportunities they refuse to seize.
The provision of health care at the hospital setting is no exception. Every hospital plays the “How are we doing?” game but few appear to understand the principles behind the rhetoric. While undergoing an emergency appendectomy recently, I found a hospital that lives customer service. My experience may not be universal at the facility but it illustrates the customer service factors necessary for a successful hospital.
My selection of this hospital during my health crisis was based upon previous visits that my family had made to the facility. While this visit was the most lengthy and complicated, the impressions formed in the past were not only vindicated as correct but reinforced.
Make your customers feel welcome
Patients arrive at a hospital and are treated through the emergency department or directly admitted. Their choice of hospital is governed by many factors, and when they can control their choice, they will. As an EMT for 13 years I can certainly testify that patients want to go to very specific hospitals for their very specific reasons.
The feeling that patient receives from the hospital process is a major reason for their choice.
I chose this hospital because its emergency department is clean, quiet, orderly, well lit, well maintained and the staff is visible performing their duties. Now, what did the hospital do to make me feel welcome?
Upon arriving in the ambulance, I was taken directly to an assigned bed in the emergency department. No waiting. I was expected.
There were hospital personnel on hand immediately to greet me, by name, to ensure my transfer to their care and to get me settled in my bed. They were good natured, full of giggles and friendly. My medical history and my current complaints were noted rapidly and accurately.
Provide your customer a rapid response to their need
I was seen by a doctor or a physicians assistant within minutes after my arrival. Again, a friendly and personal greeting with a thorough exploration of my current problem. And… a promise of immediate pain relief, the equivalent of the cup of coffee while waiting. With pain relief, waiting became bearable.
The doctor did not fix my problem. He did not treat my problem. He made me feel better about my problem. Offering relief for an immediate concern is a valid response for a patient and allows the hospital time for additional diagnostic tests and eventual planning for a treatment.
Allow the customer some control over process and resolution
Imaging involved a CAT scan. One of the imaging options was far less pleasant than the other two, and it was presented to me with a clear opportunity to decline. I did so, and felt some control in a situation that had been out of control for some hours. The imaging folks were kind and gentle, and friendly. They discussed how long the imaging would take with me and made a point of establishing that they would be as fast as possible.
I’m an old hand in the health field. I knew I had a serious problem in my intestines, a major Crohns flare or a hot appendix. I knew the testing and imaging that needed to be done. I was prepared to wait, even for hours, as I had in the past at other hospital emergency departments.
If you can solve the customer’s problem, do it fast and do it right
Within an hour, the emergency department doc was back to describe a definitive image of a bad appendix. He let me know that I would be seeing a surgeon very shortly and that surgery would probably be that evening.
A surgical physicians assistant followed on his heels to begin their preparation. Calm assurance and a willingness to answer all my questions helped ease my fears.
The surgeon arrived later, projecting calm and confidence. I was moved to pre-op where I was overwhelmed by the number of caregivers and their interaction. I felt like I was the most important person in the hospital.
As we waited for the surgical team to free up from another operation, the surgeon stopped by about every ten minutes to reassure me and to check on my condition. The anesthesiologist and the OR nurse also visited me, again with a friendly attitude and reassurance. And, then I went into surgery.
Don’t abandon your customer at the point of sale
I spent two nights in the hospital. I might have gone home the day after surgery but I was not ready. No one tried to push me out the door. During this time my wife spoke with several of the medical staff and was kept apprised of my situation and condition. We both received needed emotional support after the surgery.
Post surgery can be a miserable time for a patient. Shaking off the sedation from the surgery, managing the new pain and wound care can all be problems. All of those things can be done by a patient alone but that is not the optimal way for a patient to recover, emotionally as well as physically.
The staff in the ICU was great. They made sure I was safe as my head cleared ever so slowly. I was fed, some very good food that was designed to mesh with my lactose intolerance and gluten sensitivity. I was medicated but I never felt the staff was pushing pain meds. In some hospitals, a patient can get the feeling that the staff has orders to reduce medical inventory not support patient comfort. If I asked, I received meds. I also got what was ordered. This allowed me some control over my illness.
Say goodbye to a customer if you ever want to say hello again
When it came time for discharge, I was wheeled out in a chair. I was offered the choice and was still unsteady. The transport person waited with me while my ride home came to the door. I also received a cut flower to take home, a simple but very moving gesture by the hospital.
Hospitals compete for patients by developing their expertise in niche markets. The most overlooked niche may be that for quality customer service. Patients have choices and quality customer service cannot help but influence those choices.`
