Today I sat outside my PCP’s office, waiting for my annual physical. Unfortunately, I was kept waiting for over an hour. With no explanation. Okay, so in a medical practice, some days just don’t go according to a schedule, I understand that. But a little communication from staff would go a long way.
I whiled away the minutes listening to and observing the staff and all I thought of was, are my patients being treated the same way when I refer them here? Last week, when I made this appointment, I was actually told to “take it or leave it.” WTF? So I made sure that I was a little earlier than usual today, so I could watch and learn.
Our office staff routinely delivers the highest level of customer care every day - our secret shoppers and patient feedback confirms it. Now I have to wonder if we could do even better by eliminating one of our most frequent referrals. It pains me to do so, because the doctor is so good - amazing, even. He really walks the talk. But how important are a doctor’s support staff to your overall patient satisfaction? Pretty damn important, I’d say.
I discussed a lot more than just a flu shot with my PCP today. And it looks like we’ll start secret shopping all of our recommended offices. It just really ticks me off that we have to sneak around to make sure that people do their jobs well. I’m of the opinion that if you need direct supervision to deliver a superior patient experience, you are in the wrong line of work.
