Nine Tips for Making a Good Impression with Your Patient

Making a good first impression is essential to establishing positive rapport with your patient. Within the first few seconds of that encounter, most patients will make a value judgment about whether they like you and whether they think you're competent to care for them.
You don't get a second chance to make a great first impression!
Studies show that people, including patients, are most likely to remember the beginning and the end of an encounter. This is called the "serial positioning effect."
That's why, in addition to a positive first impression, a positive ending encounter with the patient is also very important. Taking a moment or two to say goodbye to the patient and thank them for the opportunity to be of service leaves them with a positive impression of you.
With the serial positioning effect, the things that happen in the middle of an encounter tend to be a "blur," and details are often forgotten.
From a risk management standpoint, that can be very good. It means that if you're nice to the patient when arriving on scene and nice to them when you leave, the patient is likely to forget about the bumps (i.e., mistakes) that may have occurred in the middle-like that IV you missed! Typically, patients won't sue you if they like you-even if you do
make mistakes.
Here are nine tips for making a good first impression that will set the stage for a positive interaction with the patient-and reduce the risk of a lawsuit:
1. Recharge yourself. Take a deep...

Source: JEMS Patient Care - October 1, 2017 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Stephen R. Wirth, Esq., EMT-P Tags: Columns Patient Care Administration and Leadership Source Type: news