Healthcare reception services and call answering: Your greeting establishes your brand and service expectations in the mind of the caller.
Whether you provide private primary care services, run an allied health practice, or focus on mental health, something as simple as the greeting you give when answering a call conveys, both overtly and subliminally, much about your brand and the expectations the caller will have about the service you provide.
Paperclip provides call answering and healthcare reception services for a broad range of primary and allied health care providers. One of the key questions we discuss when onboarding a new client is the greeting they wish us to use when answering a call.
Formality: private primary care providers
The majority of our private primary care providers (private GPs) prefer a formal salutation and request that this ‘formality’ is maintained throughout the call. The people staffing the healthcare reception services refer to callers as ‘Mr Smith’ or ‘Mrs Smith’ regardless of whether, when asked their name, they include their first name. The tone of the call, whilst friendly and helpful, is businesslike.
Healthcare reception services with flexibility: Allied Health Professionals
For healthcare reception services at providers such as Physiotherapists, Osteopaths and podiatrists, the preferred approach is typically to mirror the tone of the responses given by the caller.
For example, for callers who respond formally and indicate that they are elderly, the approach would be to retain the ‘Mr Smith’ and ‘Mrs Smith’ appellation. However, for callers who give their name as, for example, Heather Smith, and follow up with ‘Call me Heather’, the Paperclip team member would adopt a more relaxed, personal approach to the call.
Unless, the client, like the primary care providers, has requested that a specific approach is to be used.
Empathy: psychologists and mental health care
Healthcare reception services might be handled differently for psychologists, and other healthcare professionals treating patients with mental health problems. There is often a directive to actively encourage a more relaxed, personal approach. This could include the use of first names as the default greeting, and an acceptance that average call length may be longer than for other healthcare providers.
Green lists for healthcare reception services
All Paperclip clients have the option to have a green list, sometimes called a VIP list, of regular patients. Specific guidance can be provided regarding greetings for each patient on the green list. Consequently, for example, a primary care provider could request that callers on the green list are addressed by their first names as an exception to the formal approach.
Capturing caller information
Particularly for new patients, Paperclip healthcare providers may ask for a basic information set to be captured. This could include, for example, name, address, contact number, outline details of the issue to be treated, date of birth etc. Some callers may be reluctant to divulge what they may regard as sensitive information, such their date of birth, or issue they wish to discuss with the healthcare provider.
The Paperclip team member will never pressure the caller into disclosing information if they appear reticent to do so. In many cases, phrasing a request in a polite, natural, and open way is enough to pre-empt any reluctance on the part of the patient. For example, one of Paperclip’s most experienced team members, when addressing older callers, will ask: ‘May I be so bold as to ask your date of birth?’
Unless proffered independently by the caller, Paperclip team members would not be tasked with asking questions linked to medication or drugs.
Awareness training and active listening
Paperclip team members receive awareness training in areas such as mental health, dementia, and depression. When combined with active listening, this means they are able, on occasions, to pick up signs that the caller may be struggling in some way and adapt their call approach accordingly.
Whilst Paperclip team members may be tasked with collecting a specific information set from a caller, we don’t use scripts. We believe callers are happier when they are treated as an individual and, consequently, are much more likely to provide the information requested.
The importance of ground rules
Whether you use a reception desk service provider like Paperclip, have an in-house reception team, or a combination of both, it is worth establishing ground rules as to how you want calls to be answered, both in terms of the initial greeting and the subsequent conversation. It is not about curtailing personal flexibility, or being ‘on message’, it is simply a recognition that the way your callers are handled can have a significant impact on the caller’s perception of your brand and service expectations.
In some cases, of course, it can determine whether the caller decides to use your services or opt to use a competitor.
Discovery call with Paperclip
For an open discussion of the specific opportunities and challenges faced by your healthcare practice, and the outcomes you are looking to achieve, please call the Paperclip team on 01246 418 181 or email healthcare@paperclip.co.uk.
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Hi, I’m Anne Batty, Managing Director of Paperclip. I am passionate about customer service. I believe enduring relationships are built on being open, transparent and trustworthy.
I love questions. So, if you have a question relating to telephone answering – pricing, technical, scope and more – I would love to hear from you at anne@paperclip.co.uk or 01246 418181.
Paperclip’s clients enjoy working with us. I know you will too.