Medical customer service requires care, communication

“I’m cured.”

“The pills helped.”

“I have a wonderful doctor.”

“Everyone was so caring.”

Ex-patients have said all of the above statements to me. There are so many happy endings to health-care stories that to write about them would fill all my articles for the rest of my life.

There is, of course, a flip side to medical care, and that is usually on the side of poor customer service, poor communication and assumptions.

On the patient side, we need to be proactive, ask questions and commit to our own healing.

I am writing this as I sit in a dimly lit examining room, waiting to meet with a technician. My appointment was for 10 a.m. It is now 11 a.m. I have written two thank-you notes, read a few articles and begun this writing. The technician showed up at about 11:20 a.m. Why did this happen? Nobody could give me a clear answer, but I got the impression that the doctor’s office did not put in the proper order. When I showed up, they had no idea I was coming and it took some time to get things straight. Over and over, I was asked if I had the day right, who had told me to come in, etc.

Through having more tests myself, and in talking with friends, I have learned about the following:

• A doctor who never looked at the patient during the appointment and told a friend accompanying the patient that the patient had cancer;

• A well-meaning nurse expressed sympathy about a negative diagnosis before the doctor himself told the patient;

• A doctor told a patient that he had cancer and then abruptly left the room when his pager went off. The patient sat alone in the room, numbed and fearful.

• A patient made 10 calls to various people at the same clinic throughout a four-day period and finally got a call back on the fifth day.

One of the biggest complaints that I have heard and seen is front-office staff acting as though everything is routine and that patients are like any other customer. But rather than buying or selling, the issue for patients is often life-and-death. Another issue I heard about was the lack of smiling. Yes, medicine is a serious business, but a smile makes things just a bit easier.

So, what is the answer?

My own experience has been that communication and empathy are the keys.

I have come to realize that part of the problem stems from the very skills a person needs to be successful in the medical field. They have to be great in science and detail-oriented, and have the ability to be somewhat detached. If medical professionals become too attached, they cannot do their jobs. Patients want tender, loving care, but doctors need to give technical advice and treatment.

As for the administrative staff, it can be summed up easily: Don’t get so comfortable in your job that you forget that you are handling the details of people’s lives, not just their bodies.

Here are a few tips:

1. Be careful in giving information, both regarding diagnosis and general information. Offices are so careful with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act regulations, but they often forget the small confidentialities.

2. Call patients by their names, not “Sweetie,” “Dear” or “Honey.”

3. Keep follow-up lists so that patient inquiries, problems, etc. can be taken care of in a timely manner.

4. Have a Frequently Asked Questions List for all major areas of patient concern.

5. Be attentive to transitional times with patients, such as when other appointments are scheduled, when patients are released from care and when patients are transferred from one facility to another.

6. Have plans in place for the absence of key players in the office. It is called cross training.

7. If mistakes occur (and they will), don’t pass the buck. Just make sure that you investigate the situation and ensure it doesn’t happen again.

When I was 4 years old, I underwent eye surgery on both eyes for a condition called strabismus. It is a procedure where the muscles of the eyes are tightened. Of course, I didn’t know all this at the time. I just remember my parents telling me to be brave; leaving for the hospital while it was dark and being allowed to wear my duck slippers; the kindness of the nurse; and dear Dr. Monsees. Although I was only 4, I clearly remember being in the surgery. I remember the nurse talking to me while my eyes were bandaged. Most of all, I remember Dr. Monsees telling me that it would hurt when he took off the bandages.

I remember the pain and the fear, but most of all, the kindness. Later, I learned that Dr. Monsees’ wife and only child had been killed in a car accident a month before my operation. He was able to operate and comfort this child. My admiration for him swells to this day. For those of you who like happy endings, the good doctor re-married and had three children.

Illness is a journey. Hopefully, that journey is short and filled with caring professionals like Dr. Monsees and his staff, who work through tragedy and stress of their own.

Sinara Stull O’Donnell is a professional speaker and writer through Springfield-based SinaraSpeaks. She is the author of “Be The Star Of Your Life: Are You Ready For Your Close-Up?” She can be reached at sinara1@sbcglobal.net.