Going to the dentist or any doctor, in general, can be a nerve-racking experience for many people. However, as a medical practitioner, you can minimize any bad memories associated with it by merely adapting your services to make them as pleasant as possible. Creating a space that will make your clients feel comfortable is one of the most important aspects of running a clinic in order to make the experience as stress-free as possible.
You can add many features to your business to make the experience much more relaxing and enjoyable, from things such as Weave’s dental phone system, which will provide effective communication with the client, to speakers in the dental room to guarantee a relaxing experience.
Here’s are the five most crucial tips you should consider adding to your business model to present your patients with the best experience!
Easy communication
Good communication is everything, and it makes your client feel that they can reach you whenever they need to. Investing in a specialized phone system can help you to communicate with your patients and make them feel like they can contact you with any questions they might have. Such systems can send dedicated text messages with important information or confirm appointments without physically doing it yourself. It will not only save you the time you could otherwise spend with your patients, but it will also look very professional in the client’s eyes.
Make them feel comfortable
Making your patients feel comfortable is probably one of the essential aspects of running any sort of clinic. You don’t want your patients to be scared, as this may limit the amount of work you’ll be able to do on them, thus, compromising the results you may have achieved otherwise. There’s a variety of aspects you should consider to provide your clients with the feeling of comfort; however, a great way to start is by making it seem like they’re elsewhere than a medical clinic. To achieve this, you can make both the waiting room area and the procedure room itself as welcoming and cosy as possible.
Ensure that the music playing in the background suits the atmosphere you want to create and is not causing any sorts of nervousness to your patients. Installing a TV is also an excellent way for your patient to stay entertained and shift their focus onto something else rather than any ongoing procedures. A great addition may even be scented candles, which may help ease anxiety and create a relaxing and calm atmosphere.
Adding all the additional touches to provide your patients with comfort can be a valuable investment to your clients’ overall experience and may help ease your patient’s nerves.
Talk to them
It is essential to communicate clearly with your client, which also means explaining what you’re going to do to them or what will happen next. Your patient may feel more comfortable when you’re able to effectively present the problem you discovered and the treatment options available to help them.
With you granting them all the information, they can rest assured that they’re in good hands and gain confidence in your work. This will allow your customer to come back to your practice for a treatment program and make them feel more comfortable while getting any procedures done by you.
In addition to that, your patient may be feeling overwhelmed in the surroundings of a medical clinic, so make sure to make them feel as comfortable as they can be starting a simple conversation about a non-medical topic. It’s great to connect with them about any events that may be currently happening, or with such things as the current weather forecast even!
Minimise wait times to see a specialist
It’s not uncommon to have to wait for your doctor to be ready, but minimising the waiting time can improve your patient’s comfort. Waiting to see a specialist is known to increase the patient’s anxiety and cause them to overthink any procedures that may occur; therefore, minimizing the waiting time is your best bet to reduce your patient’s discomfort.
Show an interest
Your patient needs to know that you care and for them to feel like you do. If your patient can sense your interest in their health, they’re much more likely to trust you, which translates to them putting any health problems in your hands. This will not only result in your job becoming much more comfortable, as you’re able to conduct all the necessary procedures on your patient, but it will give them a sense of trust in you.
Final thoughts
Different people react differently to having to visit the doctor. For some, it can be more complicated than others, both on a physical and mental level. That’s why you must make your patients feel as comfortable as you possibly can so that you can minimise their anxiety and stress levels. Sometimes patients’ discomfort can stop you from doing all the necessary work, so their comfort must be your priority.
Elena Deeley did her degree in psychology at the University of Edinburgh. She has an ongoing interest in mental health and well-being.
