The Reasons

As someone once told me right before they gave me some constructive feedback about something I needed to change, “I’m going to tell you something you might not like, but feedback is golden.” He was right. It was hard to hear, but I needed to hear it to improve.

Many practices solicit patient feedback via surveys sent after the exam, but can we always count on those to be brutally honest? My challenge for you is to target a small group of patients you feel comfortable asking for brutally honest feedback.

The Implementation

Below are some considerations for implementing this:

• Identify patients you can trust to give honest feedback. Consider friends, family, or longtime patients.Don’t identify these patients to the staff. Employees will behave differently if they know they’re being evaluated.
• Provide the patient with a list of things to provide feedback on.
• If appropriate, provide an incentive (such as discounts on eye wear) to the patient for their time and effort.
• Without identifying the patient, present the feedback to the staff. Commend positive feedback and discuss areas that need to improve. OM