Fresh View: Running a Multidisciplinary Clinic from the Perspective of a Patient

Patients rely on medical practitioners to give them the best possible treatment. When we think of the cooperation between the two in this respect, we realize how important the relationship is. The patient/practitioner paradigm is one that has to be built on trust and transparency. It is also one that is fundamental to a healthy society.

Patients expect the same customer service, hospitality and facilities from their medical practitioner as they would from an airline, bank or restaurant.

Multidisciplinary clinics are often structured and led from the perspective of the medical industry. However, patients' opinions are also valuable. This approach is good, because paying attention to patients needs can be a thing that will make service a 100% match with patients' comfort. There are many external variables that go into the successful running of a physical rehabilitation center including regulation, insurance, politics, and basic economics that can limit what it can do for those who come to them for treatment.

But the overall patient experience is what matters most, and that they get a sense of being really valued by medical industry professionals. Patients are no longer accepting substandard rehabilitation and detest being analyzed as just another number.

According to Shahid Durrani from Absolute Health Center, the patient experience is the most critical component to their rehabilitation. Providing a service that is structured from the patient’s perspective is of vital importance for medical services.

So, as a medical practitioner, how can you ensure that your multidisciplinary clinic is one which instills confidence in the patients? Will patients approach you without a second thought? It might not happen overnight, but you can transform your clinic into a place that patients actually want to visit, strange as that may sound with regard to a place that provide physical rehabilitation. It is a transformation that is certainly worth the effort.

• Quality medical advice and treatment

Every medical practitioner must ensure that they provide the best medical advice and rehabilitation. While patients obviously go to a clinic to seek treatment from a physical injury (like motor vehicle accident, knee or shoulder pain), they want to connect with their practitioner on a personal level and get informed on all background information with regard to rehabilitation, alternative treatments, and success rates.

The first step in running a holistic and efficient clinic is to have qualified medical practitioners who listen to their patients, give a proper diagnosis, and start them on the right treatment. Quality care from a medical practitioner is necessary, as is following through with the treatment protocol. However, patient experience is no less important. And that’s the field multidisciplinary clinics often overlook. Their attitude is built from the perspective of a clinical worker, not a patient, which is a huge mistake.

When patients return satisfied from the physical rehabilitation center, they are more likely to recommend it to others which are bound to boost your practice. Moreover, comfort and satisfaction will help your patients to recover faster.

• Co-operative staff

Those who run rehabilitation centers need to constantly consider how patients feel when they go to them for treatment. What is the atmosphere? Does he/she feel welcome? Is the staff focused just on treatment, or on the empathy too?

Apart from the medical practitioners, a patient interacts with the staff. A patient will never want to continue cooperation with the multidisciplinary clinic if the staff is rude, discourteous or simply disinterested in his problems. This is a trait common to all industries.

• Punctuality

One of the many things that irritate patients while visiting a clinic is the long waiting times. A lot of clinics make the mistake of believing that long wait times are just an industry standard, instead of proactively attempting to reduce wait time and optimize on every level.

There are many different ways to run a clinic and various kinds of software services and appointment automation tools available to streamline the entire experience. It makes sense to manage appointments efficiently and minimize delays. It is highly recommended to have a system in place that patients can use to connect medical professionals at the scheduled time. It will improve patient satisfaction to a large degree.

• Cleanliness

A physical rehabilitation center is a place that is frequented by a lot of people and may turn out to be a home for countless viruses and germs. Cleanliness and sanitation are something that a multidisciplinary clinic cannot compromise on under any circumstance.

Nothing will drive away patients of a clinic faster than the possibility that the clinic is not adhering to proper cleanliness standards. Nobody would want to go for rehabilitation and come back home carrying the virus.

• The Best Equipment

Every big city has hundreds of physical rehabilitation centers. However, most patients have one or two favorites they prefer above all others. What makes those particular places special? Top quality medical service would certainly be one of the reasons, though patients often find it difficult to articulate this preference in many research studies.

An ideal clinic not only provides the right diagnosis but is also equipped with high-end tools to support patient rehabilitation needs. It has a proper appointment-reminder system in place, an easy-to-follow paperwork process, and many other systematic advantages. Everything about the clinic should feel easy, balanced, stress-free, and efficient.

• Transparency and honesty

As a practitioner, it is important to convey to your patients as much information as possible. Additionally, it is highly recommended to run your practice with 100% clear policies and steer clear from any fraudulent activities.

Any person who comes to the multidisciplinary clinic for advice and treatment would also like to have additional information from a webpage. It is a good idea to stay in touch with patients when they are not in the clinic. A blog with advice is an excellent way to be informative and helpful. You might also consider novel ways to interact with your patients. You could, for example, send an email on their birthdays wishing them health and well-being for the on-coming year.

Conclusion - What Patients Want

Patients want their medical professionals to be accessible and have a high level of empathy. They need to be confident that their practitioner will provide them with the right diagnosis and treatment. Further, multidisciplinary clinics must ensure they are well-maintained and are equipped with the right tools.

Before establishing a clinic, it is vital to ask yourself what customers are looking for and what would really enhance their overall wellbeing. Being on the same page with patients can help to understand their needs and provide them with the appropriate solutions. It is time that healthcare providers treat their patients as friends, or, at least, high-valued customers. Treating them as numbers is not working and customer-oriented practices are the ones that will thrive in the near future.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.