Clear communication is vital in building and maintaining effective relationships with your patients.
When it comes to patient-provider communication though, more often than not, the burden is put on you as the provider to communicate better with your patients.
But what about how patients communicate with you?
Some patients come to their appointments with a list of questions in hand; this isn’t their first rodeo and they came prepared. Others don’t know how to communicate how they feel or what they need, which can be overwhelming for both of you.
Fortunately, a bit of guidance can go a long way.
One of the most valuable steps you can take to build a trust-centered relationship with patients is providing a resource up front that sets expectations and fosters productive discussions between the two of you.
To empower your patients from the get go, teach them how to be exceptional patients. By helping them understand what you expect of them and what they can expect from you, it gives them agency to work towards shared decision making with you.
Prioritizing thorough communication with patients can help them feel more positive about their treatment plan, which can lead to increased compliance with your suggestions and ultimately lead to more positive health outcomes. An engaged patient is a healthier patient.
Making it easier.
Since we know the responsibility of communication usually falls on your shoulders as providers, we created a tip sheet you can print out and give to patients to help them be even better patients.
Like we’ve said before, we don’t think patient engagement is a software solution alone, incorporating resources like this into your patient engagement strategy can go a long way in helping establish trust with patients and building your practice reputation.
Check it out here. We even made it editable so you can adapt it to your office needs as you like.