Physicians realize the importance of interpersonal communication skills for delivering effective care and ensuring patient satisfaction. Yet changes in healthcare are pushing doctors to care for patients in shorter visits while juggling more administrative tasks.
What can you do, as a doctor, to ensure patients are satisfied while keeping office visits efficient?
Excellent communication pays off
Extensive research confirms that learning excellent patient communication skills is worth your time.
Effective physician communication increases patient satisfaction, trust in the provider, and even psychological well-being. Excellent communication has also been shown to improve outcomes for specific diseases—from reducing the risk of mortality from coronary artery disease to improving diabetes control. A systematic review of the literature concluded that a strong patient-physician relationship has a small but statistically significant benefit for overall healthcare outcomes.
Communicating thoughtfully also has practical benefits. A short but focused initial interaction will save time clarifying patient needs later in a visit. Even more consequentially, perceived communication failures are associated with more medical malpractice claims.
Finally, many Americans trust online doctor reviews. A single dissatisfied patient could leave a poor review that impacts your professional success. Being intentional about how you interact with patients is an important way to ensure that your online presence reflects the quality of care you offer.
How to guarantee patient satisfaction
Here are 5 simple tips to ensure patient satisfaction while you continue providing quality care with short, efficient office visits.
1) Make eye contact
The best way to show someone you are listening is to make eye contact. This seems simple, but many clinicians forget to look up from the screen.
Research shows that patients perceive healthcare providers who consistently make eye contact as more empathetic. Busy providers will benefit from making eye contact a regular part of patient interactions, even if only during the initial greeting.
2) Give patients time to speak
Clinicians are trained to elicit the patient agenda, but for how long should you let them respond? One study of clinical encounters found that doctors usually interrupt patients after just 11 seconds.
Listening carefully to patients is critical for patient-centered care and is often the most efficient approach. Wait 30 seconds to hear the patient’s agenda before redirecting the conversation. This will ensure that you are orienting the clinical encounter towards specific priorities that matter to each patient.
3) Know the patient’s name
Similar to making eye contact, using a patient’s name makes them feel more cared for. This is as simple as making sure to glance at their chart or have an aid brief you before entering the exam room.
Repeating a patient’s name once or twice during the visit is an easy way to boost satisfaction.
4) Have your literature ready
Do you have systems in place to easily share literature with your patients about their condition?
Educational materials and follow-up resources are essential components of patient engagement. Software solutions can save time by customizing links, attachments, and product recommendations relevant to frequently seen cases. The result is less time sharing literature, more satisfied patients, and better health outcomes.
5) Use effective clinical communication
What you say may be the biggest variable that determines patient satisfaction. Consider learning models and approaches created to help healthcare professionals communicate with patients effectively. These strategies can decrease patient anxiety, increase compliance, and improve clinical outcomes.
If you’re looking for additional tips to hone your communication skills, you might enjoy this article: 12 key strategies to improve patient communication.