As a dedicated doctor, it is
not always easy to hear criticism from patients. However, if a doctor changes his
mind set so as to view complaints as free advice about how to make his medical
practice the very best it can be, both his business as well as the patients would
benefit.
Some of the most common
patient complaints include that the doctor is not easily accessible,
patients have to wait too long after coming in for an appointment, the doctor
not giving enough time to the patient, the doctor not returning back the
patient’s calls, or does not explain properly what is going on to with the
patient.
In fact, the complaints of
the patients can prove to be a lot beneficial for the doctor. A doctor should
even encourage the patients to share their feedback, which includes both
constructive complaints as well as compliments. In any case, a doctor would
rather have patients come
directly to him and/or his staff to discuss their concerns and proposed
solutions, rather than bottling up their displeasure. If the patients do not
vent out their displeasure and their concerns are not resolved, then in due
course of time, they would end up either switching their doctor and/or
bad-mouthing the doctor to potential patients.
If a patient is unhappy with
the doctor or his services, the doctor should encourage him to tell what the
problem is so that the doctor can try fixing it. While it is true that it is
not possible to fix all problems as the doctor does not have unlimited
resources of time, money, energy, and staff, the doctor can at least try to
address the fixable points so that the patient is happier in the future.
The best complaints are the ones
that are accompanied by possible solutions. Therefore, the doctor should always
encourage his patients to propose a solution while they are telling the problem
being faced by them. This increases the chances that the doctor would be able
to do something productive to address the patient’s concern.
Quite a few times, doctors
have to deal with patients who are unhappy with a previous doctor. When asked
whether they discussed their dissatisfaction with that doctor, mostly the reply
is in negative. Dissatisfied patients do not complain to their doctors, which
is basic human nature. Patients are
worried that if they complain, the doctor or his staff might get angry and would
not provide them with good medical care. Also, patients often feel powerless
and helpless in front of their doctors, thinking that the doctor would not pay
heed to their issue and would ignore them. So they do not feel it worthwhile to
complain. However, doctors would rather
have happy, satisfied patients who recommend them to their family and friends
than unhappy, disgruntled patients who leave the doctor’s practice and tell
others about their dissatisfaction.
Patients with complaints
should be encouraged to talk with the doctor and/or his staff about their
concerns. This can be done through a scheduled phone call or
in-person visit, a feedback form that could be dropped into a box designated
for the same, or an email.
The doctor should be sure in
developing in-person or online feedback forms that all the important aspects of
the feedback are covered, viz. asking for complaints/criticism, proposed
solutions, as well as compliments (as it is also important to know what one is
doing right so that he can keep on doing the same).
The doctor should also be
sure to follow up with patients who submit feedback to let them know that their
opinions matter, and that the patients taking out their time to comment is
appreciated. While not all the issues that patients complain about are valid or
fixable, most of them are, and that’s where one should focus his attention.
This would empower the patients and send them a message that their opinions
matter.
By being responsive to a
specific patient’s concerns, one is also likely to resolve issues that are
troubling other patients who might not have spoken up, and would have an
exponentially greater positive impact.
By working in collaboration
with one’s patients, a doctor can build a stronger practice, thus creating a
win-win situation for both himself as well as his patients.
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