3/21/2018 0 Comments Who's Next? What's Next?by Paul Batson, O.D. Center Director VisionAmerica of Birmingham Who's next, what's next? This is a pretty simple concept but one that I think can have a large impact on our patient's experience. As I recently sat with my wife in the waiting rooms of doctors offices, radiology clinics and ultimately a hospital surgery suite, I realized that just how applicable this concept really is. Our patients are already a little anxious about being at the doctor's office, yet when you add uncertainty to the mix, the anxiety can begin to increase. I am keenly aware of the challenges that can take place within the walls of a medical facility on a day-to-day basis, but my professional experience offered little solace as I sat in the waiting room and watched time tick by.
Am I in the right place? Who will I see next? What will happen next? These are the things that run through our patients' minds. As I walk the halls of VisionAmerica, I tend to know what's next. I know what the average wait time is in the waiting room. I know what patients are on the schedule for the day. I (usually) know how long an exam will take. I know what will likely happen to the patient based on the diagnosis given. Reflecting back on my experience at the hospital with my wife made me wonder how not knowing what's next and who's next affects our patients as they enter our practices. (By the way, my wife's surgery went well!) This led me to Dr. David Rock. He is the Director of the NeuroLeadership Institute whose mission is to "bring neuroscientists and leadership experts together to build a new science for leadership development." I don't understand everything they are trying to do, but Dr. Rock does have some good information when it comes to the psychology of "knowing what's next." In fact, he came up with an acronym related to the topic: SCARF.
Dr. Rock tells us that the five domains of SCARF are primary emotional needs. While all of these are certainly applicable in our industry, certainty might just be the most commanding. This is because a medical office is the pinnacle of uncertainty. Even if you are simply going in for a checkup, you aren't "certain" that everything is ok. Addressing certainty, Dr. Rock says, "Ambiguity of any kind generates a danger response." "Ambiguity of any kind generates a danger response." - Dr. David Rock If this is true, our patients are likely armed with a danger response as they walk through our door and the slightest change, such as running behind schedule, can heighten that response. This is crucial for us to understand because the more clear we are with our patients, the more at ease they feel. If we truly want our patient's trust, we need to be clear about what will happen in the future. And yes, that even means telling our patients if we are running 20 minutes behind schedule. This may cause a negative response from or within the patient, but at least it won't be uncertainty! So, practically speaking, how can we combat uncertainty and help our patients understand what's next? It's simple: Over Communicate! We have to fight the impulse to bypass the assumption our patients know something beforehand and tell them anyway. At worst, they will tell you they already know this or that. At best, we are letting them know what's next, making them comfortable, and earning their trust. My guess is that few, if any, of your patients will complain if you are intentional and over communicate. I've asked our staff here over the past few weeks to be intentional about two things when finishing up with a patient: (1) Let the patient know what will happen next and (2) Let the patient know who they will see next. Both are pretty simple to do but can dramatically reduce ambiguity and decrease the patients anxiety. I hope to dive into the other four domains of SCARF in the future, but in light of my recent experience, I felt compelled to touch on the topic on patient uncertainty now. Do you have any thoughts or experiences to add to the discussion? I would love to hear from you!
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