Practice tip of the week: 7 Tips to make your patients smile

With all the useful information available on Physicians Practice, it is easy to become overwhelmed.

With this in mind, the tip of the week is a chance to reflect on some of the wisdom found all across the site.

In a February 2021 story on seven ways to make your patients smile, Abigail Beckel and Sara Michael write the following:

"Amid the stresses of running a medical practice, it’s sometimes hard to find the time to keep your patients happy. Here are seven small but mighty ways you can make your patients happy they chose your practice:

1). Be on time -Feeling like you respect their time by keeping on schedule is sure to please your patients. Plus, for you and your staff, it relieves the stress of constantly apologizing to irritated patients for your lateness.

2). Enter the exam room prepared -Take that extra minute before you walk into the exam room to review the chart so you can greet the patient by name and show awareness of his symptoms.

3). Follow up and communicate - If your patient has had lab work or testing, was referred to a specialist, or presented with significant symptoms, make time to call her to follow up. See how she’s doing and report on any lab or test results. This helps patients feel secure that your practice is concerned about their health and didn’t forget them as soon as they left the office. Your staff can help with follow-up calls as well. “

Check out the rest of the tips here and be sure to come back next week for another Tip of the Week!