Back office greatness

Last week we focused on what great customer service looks like in the front office. This week we’re going to focus on providing fantastic customer service in the back office. As soon as patients come back to the room, it is important to have a polite conversation with them. Ask them how they are doing, their plans for the weekend and about their job.

      Once the patient is sitting in the chair, sit down facing them. It should be eye to eye contact and ask them if they are having any pain or problems. It is suggested to have the conversation eye to eye in order to show respect for the patient. If you are fiddling with other things or are doing things on the computer it demonstrates a lack of caring abou the patient. When the patient is letting you know about any problems they are experiencing use empathetic listening. Nod, to demonstrate listnening and restate what you think they are saying in order to clarify.

      Once the doctor steps into the room, rephrase what the patient told you infront of the patient. You don’t want them to think that you are having a private conversation about them. You also don’t want to misrepresent the problem that the patient is having.

      If the doctor is running behind, let the patient know how far behind and make sure they are able to continue to wait for the dentist. People’s time is valuable and you want to make sure that they know they are going to have t wait for the dentist and about how long it is going to take. Patients are asked to show up early to respect the office’s time, show them the same respect.

Once the appointment is over and the patient is finished, make sure to let them know when they are needed back to the office.  Something as simple as asking if they need anything else and thanking them for coming in can be the difference between them coming back or going to another dentist.