Written By: John Biasiello – President, Sukay & Associates
Everyone is held to a standard and to timelines in one way or another. Over the years I have wondered how businesses are impacted by missing timelines and failing on customer service requirements. Lately, however, I have been taking my mother to several of her doctor’s visits and begun to wonder why doctors are not held to the same standards of being on time to set appointments.
Doctor’s visits can prove to be difficult to come by due to the limited hours and appointment times available, seemingly always at the worst possible times of the day or only during specific days of the week. I am sure I am not the only one who has experienced the consistent follow up email reminders of your appointment times only to show up and have to wait for hours after the appointment time. Does this not seem like a lack of regard for the patient’s time as well?
I understand doctors are busy and only have certain times they can see their patients. This leads to a set schedule of appointments during those few days a week they are available to take patients. However, the problem isn’t with the process so much as the day of the appointment where doctors seem to be running far behind schedule. I have had two experiences in the last two weeks where my Mothers Heart doctor made us wait 3 hours and I waited for a dentist for a half hour. They seem to apologize for these errors but it is always, “Sorry I got behind”. I just can’t believe you get behind 3 hours. The reason I get so angry is there does not seem to be any consequences to this behavior. If we were to miss the appointment they would want to charge us for a missed visit. Why should we pay for the visit if the doctor is 3 hours late?
I think there needs to be something done to make sure that when medical professionals schedule an appointment, they keep it. If not, I believe the patients should not be made to pay for an appointment that is excessively late. Not only is it common courtesy, but they are not the only people that have time constraints.
Working with people that respect time commitments and value customer experience makes the entire process much more enjoyable. As JC Costarino stated in a recent blog on client experience “Tell them something, even when there’s nothing to say.” Whether you are a doctor, insurance broker, or salesman, keeping your clients informed of any setbacks or delays reassures your customers that you do value a positive customer experience and respect their time.
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