The Best Way To Handle Patient Complaints

Patient complaints are not uncommon. Doctors sweat to serve their patients in every way but a few patients are bound to be dissatisfied by one factor or the other.

These  complaints are usually inspired by minor reasons. In most cases the reason is either the administrative staff behavior or some clerical problem. Some patients expect VIP treatment from the doctor at all times of the day which is practically impossible.

Patients may feel they have been cheated when they do not get the degree of attention they want. Patients coming to an infertility clinic are often very emotional and overly sensitive and may get upset by the smallest problems. They are often fed up of going to doctors and getting probed and prodded endlessly.

It is essential for medical staff to handle these complaints with a sensible attitude. Avoiding the patient or just ignoring the complaint makes matters worse. The solution does not lie in turning a blind eye towards the cause. The doctor should take it as a golden opportunity to improve their services.

The doctor needs to listen to the patient’s complaints. Some patients feel better once they realize that the doctor is there for them and is ready to listen to their problems.  Most of them are relieved after venting out their frustration.

The doctor should not get defensive and learns to take a rational approach towards the problem. If the doctor finds he has to address the same problem repeatedly then it would be prudent to analyse and fix the cause of the problem , rather than just handling the complaint itself.

The Commonest Complaints Patients have About Their Doctors

There is no patient who cannot recount horror stories about doctors. If you ever reveal yourself to be a doctor at a random party, be prepared to be regaled with endless complaints as to how terribly insensitive and uncaring doctors are these days. Apparently, their legendary family doctor was far superior  and everyone fondly remembers the caring doctor of yore, who made house calls and was a friend, philosopher and guide along with being a doctor !

That doctors do not share information with them is by far one of the most common complaints. This is a rightful complaint as doctors, being busy, do not share information with their patients unless they feel that the patient needs it. If the patient’s health is improving they feel that it is useless to burden them with information about their pathophysiology and differential diagnosis. But if the patient doesn’t get better, they will most likely have complaints against the doctor for not sharing all information with them. Assuming that he deliberately withheld information they imagine that the doctor is simply out to cheat them. But the fact is, he may simply have been too busy to reveal information to them.

It is a waste to make complaints that your doctor does not share information with you. You only become sulky, enraged, sad and bitter with your doctor being none the wiser about your resentment. Your doctor most probably thinks he has told you whatever you need to know.

Learning productive strategies to work as active partners instead of being passive recipients of treatment can be a wiser approach for patients. It is best to turn confrontational with the doctor only if the output is bad. Patients need to learn to be more assertive instead of being inert.

If you want more light shed on what information you need to maximize your chances of IVF success, please send me your medical details by filling in the form at www.drmalpani.com/malpaniform.htm so that I can guide you better !

Dr. Malpani’s Advice for Doctors on how to deal with Patients’ Complaints

Doctors put in their best efforts to care for their patients. They often work hard and long hours just to ensure the best of health for their patient. Nevertheless, some patients have complaints about the kind of care provided by the doctor. These complaints could frequently be unrelated to the doctor’s behavior or actions. The patient could probably be angry for having had to wait too long or because the receptionist was ill-mannered. Some patients even have the unfair expectation that the doctor will see them first, out of turn, even though they know that the doctor has other patients to see before them, who have been given earlier appointments.

Being unhappy for some reason, patients complain. Unfortunately, most doctors are clueless about how to handle these complaints from their patients.

However, it is important for doctors to remember that medicine is a profession based on service and therefore, complaints offer an opportunity to recover when the patient perceives a deficiency in the service she has received.

Dr. Malpani advises doctors not to lose their temper or ignore complaints. It is better to empathize with the patient in their situation. They do not particularly like coming to doctors and because they are anxious about their health, they are not very emotionally strong.

Refusing to see the patient or dismissing their concerns only causes a bad situation to become worse. A minor issue which can be resolved amicably can quickly escalate to become ugly.

It’s best to believe that patients are generally sensible and rational, and wouldn’t complain hadn’t they a very good reason to do so. Complaints can be seen positively as opportunities to solve problems by investing time and effort. By doing this, the concerned patients are impressed with your attitude and turn from, being critic into becoming supporters.

Investigating and resolving patients’ complaints is worthwhile. If one patient complains, there may be ten others who may not bother to do so, but instead silently walk away and seek another doctor .

Do you feel your IVF doctor has treated you badly ? If you want to find out if you have valid reasons to complain, please send me your medical details by filling in the form at www.drmalpani.com/malpaniform.htm so that I can guide you better !