In any business setting customer experience plays a critical role in success or failure. The same relates regarding doctor’s offices or physician centers with patient experience.
Patient satisfaction
In 2018, The Beryl Institute conducted a survey of 2,000 patients across four continents to determine what parts of their visit to their doctor’s office was most important to them. Laura Ramos Hegwer, of the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA), looked at this survey in a March 2019 article and discovered some interesting findings. You can view the data from The Berwyn Institute’s survey here.
Hegwer found that out of the 2,000 patients surveyed, 90-percent stated that a clear, respectful, and understandable billing process was extremely or very important to their satisfaction with their visit (Hegwer, 2019).
PE GI Solutions offerings can assist in this vital piece of patient satisfaction, helping keep the billing process moving smoothly for you and your patients. No patient wants to fight through the trouble of attempting to understand a complicated bill. Nor do they want to deal with one that arrives long after a procedure or visit is completed. Even simple misunderstandings can lose patients as Hegwer explains.
“Jason Wolf, president and CEO of The Beryl Institute, knows from personal experience how easily a healthcare organization can lose a customer. A few years ago, his wife was mistakenly billed for a $25 copay that she already paid, and then the account was then fast-tracked into collections. Despite receiving excellent clinical care, his wife vowed never to return to the organization because the experience was so frustrating,” (Hegwer, 2019).
Communication improves patient experience
One of the highest-ranking factors in The Beryl Institute’s survey was communication. From the moment a patient steps through your door, a simple hello and a clean environment can do wonders for how your center or office is perceived.
As seen on the chart above, the top two categories, “Listen to you,” and “Communicate clearly in a way you understand,” are ranked as extremely important by 71-percent and 67-percent of survey patients respectively, with the percentage ranking as very and extremely important coming in at 95-percent on both topics. These numbers show that no matter where you are located, communication between the patient and doctor should always be a focus.
Communication is the easiest way to connect with patients. Everyone has their own communication style, which can make explaining complicated medical terminology difficult at times. Take the time to find ways to simplify these terms and diagnoses. This will allow the patient to feel as if you are taking a genuine interest in them as a person, and not just as another name on your list of daily appointments.
This focus on communication should also continue as the patient nears the end of their visit to your office, including the discharge process. 52-percent of surveyed patients stated that having a clear treatment plan explained during their discharge process was extremely important to them, while 92-percent ranked it as very and extremely important.
In summary, this survey shows that some of the biggest pains a patient may experience can be eliminated through simple communication and the correct partnerships, such as with PE GI Solutions. A high-ranking experience will keep patients coming through the door time after time.
