1.  Smile.  A lot of people get nervous about going to the doctors.  There is even such a thing as "white coat hypertension" which is an elevated blood pressure due to the nervousness of going to the doctors exhibited by people who are not diagnosed as hypertensive. 

"I am" vs. "I have to" -  Think about it, when we are going to do something fun, we say "I am going to the movies.", "I am going to the Bahamas." 

When our brakes need replaced, we say "I have to go to the mechanic's."  When our bodies and teeth hurt, we say "I have to go to the doctor’s/dentist."  

There is a world of difference between "I am" and "I have to"; so unless you work in a cosmetic surgery office, odds are that 99% of your patients have to be there.  So help make the best of it for them (and yourself!) by smiling FIRST at all of them; even the ones who never smile back.
 
2.  You know what you don't know.  You either know the answer or you don't, NEVER GUESS.  We all know what we don't know!  

It's bad enough when a restaurant server guesses at whether there is an ingredient in something that a patron inquires about; especially since some food allergies can be fatal. 

But when you work in healthcare the onus is even bigger to know that you are giving 100% correct information.  There is no shame in saying "I'm not sure but please give me one moment so that I can find out."  

Patients will respect you for your integrity, professionalism, and self-motivation to learn!
 
3.  Don't diagnose.  Unless you are the doctor, P.A., Nurse Practitioner or other licensed clinician trained to do so, don't offer your opinion. 

I have had medical assistants who thought that they were as smart as the doctor and maybe they were; but until they have gone through medical school and become a licensed physician, I only want physicians telling me what is wrong with me.

Exception to this rule is when I am having a medical test done and I ask! :)

If you tell a patient what you think is wrong, and it's bad, and you are wrong, you will have created real stress that is 100% completely unnecessary. 

So, if you are ambitious and want to learn, that's great!  Speak to your manager and let them know of your aspirations; but show respect for your level of training and let the doctor handle the diagnosing. 
 
At my first M.D. practice, we were encouraged by the founding surgeon and head nurse to be proactive in guessing what was wrong with patients so that they could accurately measure our specific strengths and weaknesses for the betterment of the practice in reviews/promotions, and as importantly, for training purposes. 

They had us write our diagnostic guesses on a post-it note in the chart, like so: "Pt appears to have conjunctivitis", "Pt appears to have a subconj hem." (Subconjunctival Hemorrhage)  "Pt appears to need a blepharoplasty."  "Pt appears to have narrow angle glaucoma."

By using the word "appears", it reminded us that although we were encouraged to learn, we were to never actually usurp our medical tech positions and diagnose anything.

4.  Repeat back - a.k.a. "Mirroring".  When talking to a patient who may be stressed, hard of hearing, appears to have ADD, a TBI (traumatic brain injury), or is on mood and mind-altering medications, have them repeat back what you told them. 

It's the best way to ensure that absolutely no miscommunication took place. 

Also, do this with your co-workers, the doctors, managers, everyone, anytime you aren't certain that you are on the same page.  It may take a few seconds or even a minute longer; but I promise you that this time is nothing compared to the amount of time spent fixing mistakes, fielding phone calls, dealing with emergencies and other issues that arise from avoidable miscommunication. 
 
5.  Perception.  Small word; huge meaning.  Realize that life is about perception.  If you have a few extra minutes to chat, don't take yourself to the front desk area where patients can see you standing around socializing and get more mad that their appointment was 30 minutes ago and yet, you all appear to be doing nothing. 

It doesn't matter if this is the first break you've taken in a month; patients don't know that, nor do they care. 

Their perception is what you are dealing with and it will be that you are contributing to their longer wait time because you are too busy socializing to take care of them. 

Fair?  No.  Understandable and common perception?  Yes.  Keep socializing short in patient areas; remember, that's what break rooms and happy hours are for! 

Remember, you are not dealing with what you said, did, or meant, but you are always dealing with how others perceive your actions, words, and intent.
 
6.  Gossip.  DON'T.  Just don't.  Seriously, DO NOT.  Being a good person takes effort and this is one of the many worthy areas in which you need to  succeed.  You work in healthcare; gossip is the antithesis of healthy.

In its least-case scenario, it's riddled with misinformation; worst-case, malicious lies that can harm peoples reputations.  Remember, you are at work; high school is over.  Be a good healthcare worker and don't contaminate your work environment with infectious rabid gossip. 

Just because someone else is doing it, doesn't mean it's okay for you to do so. 

Walk away and eventually you will realize that it feels much better than gossiping.  The only thing you can do better than walking away is to put an end to it by saying "There is a time and place for everything but this is never the time or place for gossip." 

If you work in an unhealthy environment due to gossip, lies, and other unacceptable behavior, please print out the "10 Professional Life Coach Tips to Improve Workplace Health" that I've created, review it with staff and make them sign a commitment statement to behaving as it recommends.  Here is the link:

http://www.spinaltrapb2g.com/10_pro_life_coach_tips_to_improve_workplace_health

7.  Own your mistakes.  Let's face it, we all like to be right but no one is right all of the time.

Own your mistakes with a simple acknowledgement, apologize if appropriate, amend accordingly and move on.  It will get you a lot of respect, and that should be your goal in every relationship at work because it is an essential ingredient to a healthy work environment.

 
8.  Good manners.  They're free so have plenty of them!  Everyone from front office staff to doctors should have and use good manners.  "Would you please", "Could you please", "I'd appreciate it you would help me with", "Thank you so much", etc., are all phrases that contribute to a far more pleasant and professional work environment by showing respect.  (See last line of #7!)
 
9.  TODAY.  Get it done today. 

Patients waiting for return calls?  Call them back the same day. 

Patients waiting for test results?  Call them the same day that the doc signs off on them. 

Charts need documenting?  Do it immediately because you can think you will remember it well; but you're human, you won't.  Sometimes a forgotten word or sentence can make all of the difference, in a very bad way.  Don't procrastinate. 

You never know what tomorrow will hold.  You can tell yourself "Eh, it's slow tomorrow, I'll catch up then."  And then tomorrow comes and you are sick and call off; or have one emergency patient after another, and possibly, others call off.  Suddenly that "catch up time" is non-existent and you're lucky if you can take a lunch!

The patients that you could've taken care of yesterday now get pushed to tomorrow or later and it was all completely unnecessary. 

It doesn't matter if they aren't waiting for scary test results; they are waiting and THAT is all you should care about. 

Do you like to be made to wait for no good reason? 
 
10.  Respect.  R-E-S-P-E-C-T.  Aretha called it, it's all about respect, personally and professionally.  Let me ask you this: would you rather work hard for a boss that you like or that your respect? 

Chances are if you like them, but don't respect them, you won't care if you do your best work.  But if you respect them, even if you hate their guts, you will work hard for them because respect makes that much of a difference. 

Remember, it is a better compliment

to be respected, than to be liked. 

So if you are going to aim for anything, aim to be respected.  Show self-respect by respecting others.  Remember, it's not a gift, it's to be earned; but if you want to get it, you need to give it too.  Thus, my rule of thumb is that I give it to everyone when I first meet them; whether they keep it or not, is up to them. 

As importantly, mutual respect makes for a better team environment which equals success for every employee and the employer with these 10 simple efforts. 

Please note that a successful patient experience is a two way street and one for which the medical office staff is being paid to deliver; which means that the onus (burden) of making it as professional, accurate, and positive as possible, lies on every employee from front desk to back office, seen and unseen.

In addition to this article, please click the link below for: "10 Smart Ways to be a Great Patient" and post it in patient areas because if both staff and patients get on the same page to do the most that they can, it's a win/win for all!

I used to love this Mark Twain quote:

“It’s better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than open it and remove all doubt”!

After I finally succeeded in reading the bible in 2015, I realized that it was not his original thought as evidenced by this bible quote:

Proverbs 17:28 – “Even fools are thought to be wise when they keep silent; when they keep their mouths shut, they seem intelligent.”     

Quoted from my Tyndale Publishing Life Application Study Bible, NLT version.

Giving Patients Directions

PLEASE know the east from the west; if you don't, have someone who does type up clear and succinct directions for you to read to patients who are lost and have not been to your practice before. 

These directions should be posted  by every phone so that anyone who answers can read them.

People in pain are already distracted, the last thing they need is someone confusing them when it comes to how to get to their doctor appointment. 

And don't assume evey patient uses GPS!  My mom still has an old flip phone with no online service.

Also, be sure to tell new patients to allow extra time if you know that parking is hard to find. 

Let them know if they will need coins for metered parking or money for garage parking. 

If your office validates parking garage tickets, let them know that too so that poor patients don't park 3 blocks away because they couldn't afford garage rates and it was all for nothing if you validate.