Increasing Patient Morale in a Health Clinic
Think about the last time you went to visit the doctor. How was your experience? Were you comfortable? How long did you wait before getting treated? These are just a few of the things that are overlooked by many medical facilities and they are the same things that can make the experience a memorable one. Nobody likes to spend their entire day in a clinic or doctor’s office, especially when they want to get home and get well. After saying all of that, listed below will be some hints on making the whole situation a more wholesome and better one for everyone involved.
A friendly and courteous staff
Imagine walking into a clinic to be greeted by a nurse with a “don’t care attitude”. You may probably want to leave quicker than you came. Having a warm personality can go a far way in setting the pace for everything else to come, especially in a clinic where you have to interact with many different people. Having a simple conversation with patients is one way to make them feel like you actually want to help and eventually allow for them to feel relaxed.
Waiting conditions
It can be a turn off to walk into a clinic or doctor’s office and notice that the room is hot, the seats are torn or there is no seating at all. Having a spacious, air-conditioned space with comfortable seating will keep your patients content while waiting. It would also help to have lots of reading material on a variety of topics to ensure that there is something for everyone. If there are children present, having a television in the waiting room is also handy. This way people can tune in to current events and even lead to healthy discussions between patients. Your seating situation will need to be particularly up to scratch, especially if you are within the aged care spectrum of the medical industry, to make sure further measures are made to ensure injury prevention is a priority.
Provide regular updates
One of, if not the most popular questions people ask at a clinic is, “Why is the doctor taking so long?” This will lead to others raising similar questions and eventually lead to frustration. Some doctors work by appointments while others work on a first come first serve basis. With that in mind, it is important for the staff to update patients on things such as the doctor’s working schedule and lunch breaks. So, if a new patient should arrive, they can make a decision based on the doctor’s availability.
Accessibility
Some patients may face challenges going to the clinic especially if they are disabled in one way or another. In order to enhance the experience for everyone, measures must be put in place to facilitate patients with disabilities such as ramps, grab bars and height-adjustable examination tables just to name a few. It can be very annoying to get to the clinic only to find out there is no wheelchair access for instance, and this may lead to further problems.
Preliminary testing
Before seeing the doctor, there is usually a process in which the nurse would try to gather as much information from the patient before seeing the doctor. Better yet, you have been sitting for over an hour and your name is called and that’s the time a nurse comes to check your temperature, take urine samples and check your blood pressure. Doing this kind of work in the early stages will make the process go smoothly, seeing that the doctor will already have the necessary information on his desk to proceed to the next step.
Provide follow-ups
Aside from preventing legal trouble, follow-ups are important because they provide a sense of security knowing that if anything should arise, a patient is able to reach out immediately. It also allows you to monitor your patient’s activity in terms of getting the right medication, making sure that they stick to your directions and being able to adjust treatments based on each situation.
These guidelines can go a long way in improving patient morale, and also improving the overall experience of visiting the clinic. Regardless of how small they may seem, they can do a world of good.