Customer Service in Healthcare

Creating a best in class customer experience

This is the basis for all we do…Institutional Values

S cientific, educational, and patient care excellence

U nity in pursuit of our mission

C reativity

C ompassion for our patients and their families

E mployees, volunteers, & faculty are our most prized resources

S tewardship

S ocial responsibility and ethics of the highest standard

Healthcare has come a long way…

THEN

Institutional- • All types of health care delivered in one building• Limited choice

NOWState-of-the-art Medical Centers- • Specialized Centers of Excellence• Research; Education• Easy access; close-in parking; comfortable environments

Private rooms-• natural light• amenities for families & visitors• comfortable environment• we bring the treatment and technology to the patient

Customer expectations are also ever evolving

Patients are not as patient as they used to be.

Patients live in a world where Droids and iPhones, laptops and iPads, can connect them – instantly! – to vetted advice from the Mayo Clinic.

Patients don’t expect lab results to take three days. Nothing takes three days anymore.

Patients expect to be a part of their healthcare plan

Benchmarking our customer service

Against our own past results Against our nearby health care competitors

SETTING THE BAR TOO LOW!

Customers do not stop being consumers just because they are receiving health care.

We should try to learn from industries who have been focusing on customer service for decades Retail Hospitality Entertainment

Learn from the experts

Our customers…How do patients feel?

What do they need?ScaredFrustratedConfusedVulnerableTiredAlone

CompassionAttentionUnderstandingInformationReassuranceRelief

CollagePerception of Current Environment

ANXIOUS

EXASPERATING

IMPERSONAL

FEARFUL

Collage Desirable Environment

EXCELLENCE

Teamwork

Educated/Informed

Relaxing & Comfortable

Compassionate

Hire for fitLook for people with qualities that

are aligned with our commitment to customer service and patient satisfaction.

Use behavioral based questions and have specific characteristics to look for, and only hire people who have 'it'.

Customer Service TrainingSpecific, customer-focused processes

Provide training to all employees to help develop their skills

Build employee commitment, loyalty, camaraderie and pride in their work

Reward & Recognize when individuals, and/or teams excel

Leadership DevelopmentCoaching for Service Excellence:

Weaving customer service practices into the fabric of an organization requires on-the-spot coaching between supervisors and their team members. Are our leaders equipped to deal with performance

issues? Do they understand how coaching is linked to

service improvement? Are they committed to leading the initiative and

making it work?

Specific, customer-focused process 'AIDET':Acknowledge the patient quickly and

courteously,

Introduce yourself with your name & title,

Duration -- tell the patient how long he or she can expect the visit/treatment to take,

Explain simply yet completely what to expect, what the outcome might be, etc., and

Thank the patient for choosing our services.

In health care, the patients’ experiences revolves around some critical deliverables, including: Showing compassion, e.g., caring about, not just care

for Providing a safe, welcoming and comfortable

environment Building trust Engaging the patient in the treatment plan and

throughout the process Respecting the patient’s time (waiting times; scheduling

process; registration; service recovery empowerment) Providing value-added services (patient liaisons; guest

relations; concierge type services)

Building TrustEvery encounter with our customers should buildtrust in our organization.• Employees sometimes make certain comments like

“Sorry, we are understaffed today”, or “Sorry, we just got this new system and we are struggling”, or “l’ll see what I can do.”, or “It has been a long day”, or Simply don’t engage the patient with the right words and actions at

the right times.

We need to arm our staff with the “always words” and teach them how to:

• Engage the patient in the treatment plan and throughout the process

• Earn trust and build credibility and we ultimately build customer loyalty

Service RecoveryEveryone needs to learn how to apologize.

Listen carefully and let them finish

The Blameless Apology — Don't blame another person or department. Simply say, "I'm sorry about that.”

Become a partner with the customer in solving the

problem. Solve the problem, or find someone who can solve it—

Research indicates that customers prefer the person they are speaking with to instantly solve their problem. When complaints are moved up the chain of command, they become more expensive to handle and only add to the customer's frustration.

E Every Customer

Every Encounter Every Day

3

Our Customer Service Promise

Courage: To challenge the status quoTo be a strong patient advocate

Brains:Implement evidenced based process improvementsContinually learn & growChallenge ourselves to find a better way to provide

patient care

Heart:We must have compassion & empathy and it

must be in the deepest, most human way.

What it takes- to create a best in class customer experience in healthcare

Kristin Baird, RN