The idea of conducting patient satisfaction surveys may come with mixed feelings. Do they really matter? Do you really get decent information out of them?
The answer is yes.
Patient satisfaction surveys can help you identify ways to improve your practice. And, improving your practice means better patient care and approval. In this competitive industry, what your clients think about you and your practice matters.
Here are the top 4 tips on patient satisfaction surveys:
- Ask three key questions. You’ll want to find out if patients are satisfied with their level of care, whether it was easy for them to make an appointment, and if they feel you and your staff provided courteous and efficient care.
- Word questions in ways that are easy to understand. Survey questions should be brief and focused. Avoid vague language, as well as asking two or more questions within one. For example, instead of asking how patients would rate the courtesy and efficiency of your receptionist, simply as how they’d rate her helpfulness.
- Use a rating scale. Most questions will be asked using some kind of scale. This can be anything from “on a scale from 1 to 10 with 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest rating” to utilizing a 5-point scale with “strongly agree” to “strongly disagree.” Whichever you choose, make sure you stay consistent so you can compare results.
- Allow for anonymity. Patients will typically answer more honestly if they know their identities won’t be revealed.
What you do with the results is up to you. You may not be able to take action on every single item, but you can certainly focus your attention on key items that appear to be causing the most dissatisfaction. Your goal, ultimately, is to improve the quality of your dental practice!
