Picture this; you have an essential appointment for a medical or aesthetic reason. It’s the first appointment, and although you’ve done your research, you’re tensed about the entire process. When you enter the clinic, you find it filled with people and receptionists who disregard your prior appointment. As a result, your appointment gets delayed, and you’re sitting in the uncomfortable waiting room. You’re anxious and about to run out of there. Sound familiar?
A lot of people find going to appointments a problematic experience. It needs a lot of mental preparation to face personal questions at the doctor’s or get aestheticians up and close to your face. This fear has affected patient retention in several clinics because returning to a clinic is seen as a collective stressful experience.
Its the responsibility of the clinics to be proactive in improving patient retention by focusing on those areas that need significant improvement. Patient retention can ultimately help determine the success of your clinic. Every practice should consider client relationships a crucial part of establishing their business and services. Therefore, This article deals with the different ways you can choose to design a clinic that would put your patients at ease.
1. Put more thought into interior design.
Clinics usually have a typical appearance of a cold and sterile environment. Therefore, rather than cookie-cutting your clinic, you must ensure that your clinic’s design reflects the service you offer there. For example, an aesthetician’s clinic should try adopting a modern and sleek appearance reflecting their goal of providing the best beauty services to their customers.
Choosing a single bold color and designing your office space around it can attract new customers, inculcate patient retention and keep them occupied while waiting for appointments. An interior design of a clinic should focus on being as minimal and vibrant as possible. This can help in impressing new clients and increase patient retention since clients would prefer to go back to a clinic that has an attractive appearance.
2. The cover of the book matters in some cases
In this case, entrances of clinics are considered the covers of books. People can quickly make an assumption about a clinic based on the appearance of its entry. A clinic that looks cramped with furniture and inaccessible to clients with physical needs will be considered unsuitable and intimidating. Clinic owners must ensure that the entryway has adequate space for entry and exit.
They also have to invest in entrance decor that is more likely to attract customers and increase patient retention. It is vital to make your customers feel welcomed into your establishment because of their existing fear, which is already in place.
3. The reception can make or break a deal.
Many people have an unfavorable reaction to receptionists, especially when such receptionists make them feel unwelcome in many ways. Your receptionists should focus on creating a positive feeling in your customers or anyone who approaches your clinic with queries. It would be best if you also made accessibility to speak to receptionists easy so that your patients don’t have to bend too low to chat.
It is also appropriate to ensure that the reception area is well organized without zero clutter. This is because customers make assumptions about the people working in your establishment by seeing the state of your reception. Therefore, patient retention also depends on how you treat your reception.
4. Your patients can wait, but will it be worth it?
Let’s be honest. Many of us live in fast-paced worlds, and we always have something going on in our lives. The concept of waiting for more than a few minutes, especially for a previously booked appointment, is unacceptable to many patients, who can throw tantrums from their frustration. Your clinic should work in a way that your clients are less likely to feel annoyed by the waiting time.
You can make sure to add elements into the waiting area, like offering complimentary beverages, snacks, and reading material. You can also use a seating arrangement where your clients can feel comfortable and have enough space. Use lighting and colors that can soothe your clients around your waiting room. Add informative posters or wall decor that can educate your clients as well. A waiting room that caters to a client’s needs will increase patient retention.
5. Make sure to add necessary amenities.
Patient retention also depends on a clinic’s ability to access clean and safe washrooms. This is especially important in medical clinics because a restroom is needed for many reasons. Your client shouldn’t feel unsure about using your bathrooms to leave samples that need to be tested. Make sure you have staff that regularly sanitize the washrooms and also add a design that can leave your customers comfortable and interested in using these places.
If your clinic also sees children, it is adequate to have play areas. This can help keep them occupied and reduce their parents’ anxiety before appointments. It is also essential to sanitize the play area regularly for ease of use and to prevent the unnecessary spread of infections.
6. Greenery can definitely work.
It is proven that experiencing nature can help improve your mental health by leaps and bounds. Adding plants around your clinic can increase the level of oxygen, help your clients relax, and increase patient retention. You can also incorporate natural lighting and add huge windows and skylights to increase the exposure to daylight.
If you cannot incorporate natural plants, you can also use fake plants, as these give an almost tangible feel. The inability to fully integrate natural lighting can be alternated by using warmer lights around the clinic that can increase the feeling of being calm. Avoid using bright lights as these can cause migraines and stress to your clients.
7. The healthy use of colors
Colors like nature have a direct impact on your mental health and emotions. You have to decide on a suitable color scheme for your clinic so that your patients feel relaxed and welcome in your environment, thus increasing patient retention. Shades of white and beige can add a feeling of cleanliness and purity to the space.
The use of earthy tones like shades of brown and green can also help form an image of nature and stability because of the close representation of wildlife. These colors can help improve your client’s anxiety and make them feel more at ease to access your facilities. If you want to use bold colors in your clinic, make sure that these colors are only present in the form of decorative items, so they stand out less.
8. A clean and technologically adapted environment
Clinics based in any field have to employ high standards of cleanliness. Not only does it ensure sanitation, but just being in a clean environment with zero clutter automatically elevates the space. It directly improves your patient’s mood and helps in patient retention. If it’s impossible to remove all the clutter in your clinic, at least make sure to have it somewhere your patient cannot see or access!
A clinic that has the best working technological devices for testing and other related techniques will be much appreciated by clients. Make sure to place these devices in spacious areas to avoid a congested appearance. You also must conduct routine tests on these devices to ensure they function well and perform accurately.
9. Collect and enforce customer feedback
Make a policy of asking your clients to answer customer feedback forms to understand their personal feelings and opinions about the services provided at the clinic. Also, ask them where the clinic can improve to create a better client experience. Many people don’t like answering in long sentences for each question, so you can make a rating system to understand their preference while asking them to respond in words for ways to improve the client experience.
Enforcing customer feedback forms is one way to improve patient retention, especially considering your customers’ opinions. When clients see their opinions being valued, they feel respected and heard. This can lead to them depending on your clinic as well as recommending your clinic to others.
10. Being proactive can be significant.
By being proactive, try contacting clients who have booked their appointments at your clinic. You can do so by sending them a text message or giving them a call as a reminder for their appointments and confirming with them that they will be available on the day of their appointments. This can be a great help for those clients who are likely to forget, and they can show up on time.
Another way of being proactive is to have quick solutions at hand. Clients may arrive late for appointments or need a last-minute change in timing. Instead of altogether rejecting their queries, try to accommodate their requests while being calm with them. This can help your clients depend on your establishment and improve patient retention.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best way to greet clients at your clinic?
Building a trustworthy relationship with your clients is crucial, and greeting them with a handshake followed by a brief introduction is the best way to greet them.
What can you do to improve your client’s experience at your clinics?
Your clients want to feel heard, so you must focus on actively listening to their concerns. They also want to be approached positively as this can improve their worries about their appointments.
How can you improve client safety at your clinic?
Safety culture has to be maintained where team communication is the norm. You should consider taking patient reviews seriously, and monitoring technology can help understand the areas that need improvement.
How can you manage clients in clinics?
It is crucial to listen to them, acknowledge their situation, not get defensive when they become argumentative and set clear boundaries with your clients.
Conclusion
The first and foremost goal of your clinic is patient retention. Everything else that follows is in direct connection to improving patient retention. Many more clinics can develop popularity from the small steps they can take to improve client experience and treatment. Fostering your energy into client feedback can help you understand your clinic’s strengths and limitations. A happy clinic can lead to a happy client.
