It Makes Good Sense
More than 200 years ago, the Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote:Oh wad some power the giftie gie us
to see oursel's as others see us!
Many a practice consultant has recommended walking in the front door of your office as if you were a new patient and analyzing whether the first visual impression conveys the image you would like to present.
Burns could easily have written:Oh wad some power the giftie gie us
to hear oursel's as others hear us!
Actually, the first impression received by a prospective patient is from the first telephone call for an appointment. Any orthodontist knows that much is riding on that initial phone call. But how many orthodontists' staff training includes monitoring of such conversations, either by having the orthodontist or office manager listen in or by recording the office end of the call? An advantage of recording is that the tape can be played back and discussed. Both ends of the conversation could be taped, but one should not tape a call without advising the party at the other end--which might be awkward on a first call to the office.
Telephone monitoring should be also considered for phone calls such as those for appointments, reappointments, and complaints. In all these circumstances, both what is said and how it is said are important. The telephone company actually trains people to smile while answering the phone.
Another telephone contact that should be monitored is the message on the office answering machine. Many of the messages on answering machines sound unnatural or impersonal. Again, it is important to monitor both what is said and how it is said.
Apart from the telephone, other verbal communications with patients and parents can be monitored. One of these is the case presentation. Whether the case is presented by the doctor or a staff member or both, it should be recorded until the presenters are satisfied. If patients and parents are recorded, they should be advised of what is happening and why, and their acquiescence should be obtained. The case presentation is one of the most critical pretreatment events, and it should be honed to perfection.
Verbal instructions to patients should also be recorded and studied to make sure they are complete, clear, and understandable.
Monitoring what is said in voice contact with patients and parents should be viewed by the staff as necessary to improve the quality of these relationships. Everyone must be made aware that it is a quality-control procedure and not an attempt to eavesdrop or be anything but constructively critical. In fact, a carefully worded statement about voice monitoring should be included in the office policy manual and read by every new hire. Monitoring does not have to be done forever--just until the doctor and staff agree that these communications are being used to their best advantage.
The flip side of monitoring is rehearsal. The orthodontist and assistants should record case presentations in which they take turns playing the role of the presenter and the patient or parent. These recordings should be critiqued, and the verbal exchange repeated until the most effective approach is agreed upon and everyone is so comfortable with the presentation that it seems spontaneous.
Some offices anticipate the other important verbal encounters with patients and parents and rehearse them for tone and content, even going so far as to write down responses for various situations. With enough practice, these become ingrained and acquire spontaneity. Those who answer the telephone should be prepared with appropriate responses to even the most mundane calls. It is wrong to assume that a new hire will answer the phone properly.
One of the most delicate situations is the bookkeeper's call about a delinquent account. This requires a scripted approach, because the conversation could go in so many different directions that the bookkeeper could become nonplused and exacerbate an already strained relationship.
The way assistants respond to patients' questions is also important. It helps to anticipate the most frequent questions and to script the tone and content of the answers. Assistants need to be prepared to handle questions about how treatment is progressing, and to deal with even the roughest complaint in a manner that doesn't make the situation worse.
What applies to the staff applies equally to the doctor. The orthodontist is often faced with a complaint at just the wrong time. It might be one of those days when nothing seems to go right and you are behind in your schedule and losing ground. Your nerves may already be frayed when a loudmouth patient announces to you and to the entire office, "Well, it broke again!" What you say next can make your day worse, so be prepared.