My standards for patient care and my promise to you
This may or may not come as a complete surprise to anyone, but I had a bad experience with a medical practice recently. It wasn’t for a patient that I referred, but for my own healthcare needs. It’s nothing life-threatening but it was still a medical issue that needed to be dealt with. I have been to this medical providers office THREE times now for “routine” testing with no explanation of ANY of my tests. I had to call four days after my last appointment to schedule my next one because the scheduling coordinator I needed wasn’t available at that moment. I had to call back after I was told they would be “in touch” when I never received a phone call or communication. When I finally connected with the scheduling coordinator, she was rude, acted inconvenienced and was less then helpful.
Needless to say, this experience left a bad impression of this medical provider even though my time in each visit with him was pleasant.
As a fellow healthcare provider, this lack of information and professionalism by office staff is irritating. But, if I look through the lens of a patient, I can see how frustrating and anxiety-inducing this type of experience can be.
- What questions would have gone unanswered?
- What information would have been excluded?
- What would that office have assumed about me and my health?
- Would I feel comfortable moving forward with that practice as my provider?
Unfortunately this isn’t the first time I have experienced this type of treatment–both directly and indirectly patients, family members and friends
It infuriates me that this has become the norm in patient care. Perhaps not for some practices and providers, but certainly most. Healthcare has become an expensive machine designed for maximum efficiency, yet provides inconsistent output and asks you to pay an absolute premium. If this were a car, would you buy it? Geez, I hope not.
This experience reinforced my beliefs about how I will treat my patients. A patient promise, if you will. It looks like this:
My Promise to Patients
- I will not rush you.
- I will not disregard your concerns as trivial.
- I will take the time to explain my findings and opinion.
- I will not assume you understand me.
- I will ask you to ask me questions.
- I will do everything I can to make it affordable.
- I will involve you in your care.
- I will be available to you.
- I will not belittle you or intimidate you.
- I will serve you to the best of my ability.
- I will put you first.
I don’t treat many things outside of musculoskeletal problems, but if you have a question and happy to point you in the right direction.
Send me a message below…I’d be happy to schedule an appointment and see how I can help.
