The Lean Practice Coach » Patient Experience

Music and the Atmosphere in the Office

Paul Blossom — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 20:22:43 +0000

Recently, I’ve been in a couple of practices that seemed “slow”. Part of the lethargy could be attributed to the temperament of the doctor, I’m sure. BUT the music that was on was also slow and lethargic. Neither office was busy and neither doctor seemed to know what to do to increase their business.

To build and increase practice volume and production requires sustained effort which requires energy. I will assert that part, but certainly not all, of the problem in these offices was the atmosphere that the music helped create. We all know that colors in the office are important, as well as layout and furnishings. We also know that the demeanor of the doctor and staff also are important. I think that some practitioners have neglected to thing carefully through their music selection. Instead of the calm and relaxing atmosphere they may have wanted, they got depressing instead. In one of the offices, one of the patients commented negatively on the music while I was there.

If you do a Google search on “music atmosphere restaurant” you can find articles that have quantified the inclination of patrons to spend more when the right kind of music was on. Googling “music atmosphere dental office” gets some hits on the same subject, but without quantification. In short, the restaurant article found that “Classical, jazz and popular music were associated with patrons being prepared to spend the most on their main meal.” [http://pom.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/31/1/93]

In the café I frequent, they play classical and jazz. Upbeat, not slow. Happy not sad. They are busy.

I have one client who manages and plays the music in his office from his computer, via playlists and music ripped to his computer. He wants to make sure the music is appropriate and wants no commercials. If you want the technical details, please contact me.

The Mystery Shopper

Paul Blossom — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:01:35 +0000

This morning had the privilege of taking my daughter to the oral surgeon to have her wisdom teeth removed. The intake process was pleasant enough, she went to the operatory, and I settled into the waiting room while the surgery was taking place. I opened my computer to work, and looked for a Wi-Fi connection. The office had wireless, but it required a security key to access. I went to the front desk to ask if wireless was available. The FD person looked up after a minute, said “no” and looked back down at her paperwork.

I found the interaction unsatisfactory.

On the one hand, I understand if the practice doesn’t want to offer Wi-Fi. On the other hand, the FD person could have been more sociable. The oral surgeon has a practice where return customers/patients are less important than at most practices, so maybe it doesn’t matter. If my daughter’s primary dentist asks “how was the experience at the oral surgeon’s office?”, the answer will not be as positive as it might have been.

The questions I would ask this oral surgeon include:

What is your standard for customer interaction?
Is the person who sits in the waiting room, and pays the bill a customer?
Have you thought about the customer experience of those who wait? (beyond the radio playing and magazines)

The Patient Experience

Paul Blossom — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:28:05 +0000

Lean Principle #5 is Customer Satisfaction. There are a number of questions that could be asked about customer satisfaction; What is customer satisfaction? How do we measure it? How do we improve it? and etc. All of the other Lean Principles serve the principle (and goal) of Customer Satisfaction. We define the various dimensions of customer satisfaction as in the following table:

Dimension	Examples
1. Tangibles	Is the office clean? Are the doctor and staff neatly dressed? Is the office well designed? Is the office attractive? Is the office comfortable?
2. Convenience	Is office conveniently located? Are the office hours convenient? Do you have time to work someone into your schedule?
3. Reliability	Was the problem fixed? Was the procedure done correctly? Did the patient have problems later?
4. Responsiveness	Are the doctor and staff willing and able to answer questions? Are the doctor and/or staff available after hours?
5. Time	How long did the patient wait? Waiting room, chair, to pay, and etc. How long did the entire procedure take?
6. Assurance	Did the doctor and staff seem knowledgeable about the procedure? Did they seem confident about their work and recommendations?
7. Courtesy	Were the doctor and staff friendly and courteous?

What are your goals for the patient experience? How do those goals translate into measureable outcomes for your practice? Should you have a set of standard practices for… greeting patients? …for seating patients? …for taking payment? …for taking x-rays? … for answering the phone? and etc.