The healthcare industry is becoming increasingly competitive, making it even more important for medical professionals to get feedback from their patients. Patient feedback allows you to engage new patients and also identify ways to improve the patient experience. As a medical professional, you want to provide the highest level of treatment. However, patients are also looking for connection, transparency, and care that is part of overall patient satisfaction. Asking for feedback allows patients to feel that they are contributing to the quality of care they are receiving.
Why Patient Feedback is Helpful to Your Practice
Most patients like to stay with one medical provider. Once a patient finds a doctor who invests time in their relationship and care, they will stay with the practice. Satisfied patients are often willing to tell others about their experience.
Your online reputation has become vital to your practice. An increasing number of patients are looking online to evaluate medical providers. If patients look online for information about your practice and see very little feedback or all negative reviews, they are less likely to trust you as a healthcare provider. A 2019 study found that spending as little as 10 minutes a week reviewing public feedback reduces the impact of negative reviews by 70 percent. Reputation management is important for every practice.
How to Get More Feedback
The need for more patient feedback is clear. If your practice wants more patients, you need more feedback. However, getting reviews sometimes presents challenges. If your practice is having difficulty getting feedback from patients, try these five tips to encourage patients to tell about their experience:
- Lay the Groundwork. Let patients know that you will be sending out a survey. Survey responders want to know what to expect when filling out a survey. The goal of the survey should be communicated to the responder, as well as how long it will take to complete. Some patients may fear repercussions if they respond to the survey. It, therefore, helps to reassure the patient that the survey is anonymous and they should answer honestly. When you ask patients to respond, let them know exactly what you will do with the results. For example, “We want to make sure that our hours are convenient for you. If more than half of the survey respondents want evening hours, we will stay open until 8 pm on Wednesdays.”
- Keep it to a Reasonable Length. There is nothing worse for a patient than starting a survey and finding out it is going to take 30 minutes. If the survey has too many questions, many patients will not complete it. Researchers at SurveyAnyplace found that survey response rates fell by almost 20%, when a survey had more than 12 questions or took more than five minutes to complete.
- Make Social Media Reviews Simple. It is important to understand that your patients are busy. You should, therefore, make the review process as easy as possible. A short survey is a great way to get feedback. However, you can also ask for reviews on your social media sites, by providing those links on your website and email newsletters, and follow-up correspondence with the patient.
- Follow Up. Most people are now inundated with numerous emails. Therefore, if the survey is not completed the first time, send a follow-up reminder. Response rates will increase, if a reminder is sent. After the survey has been completed, follow up with the patient and let them know that their feedback was helpful. You should also let them now how it will be used to improve your practice.
If you would like to get more reviews for your medical practice, reach out to Net One Click to find out how we can help grow your practice with the use of patient feedback.
