Has anyone noticed the decline of customer service these days? I feel like everywhere you go, everyone is crabby. Workers are just miserable lately. They hate their job and are generally crabby. Customer service is virtually non-existent. Typically, this doesn’t effect my disposition too much. If I’m at the gas station and the attendant is rude, usually I let it go and move on. Or when I check out of the grocery store and the cashier snarls at me, I ignore the unpleasantness and continue to my car.
However, you know when I can’t take it? When the decline in evident in my own profession…health care. Health care is supposed to be about helping people not hurting them. I have heard numerous stories lately of health care professionals forgetting customer service. Your child is in the hospital and the professionals treating the condition subject you to unimaginable rudeness. Or when you are scheduling an appointment with a specialist and the receptionist treats you like an inconvenience. Or you show up for a test and technician drawing blood is mad because you cut their lunch short.
I had a medical professional tell me once that my daughter was wasting her time. She stormed out the room as my two year old sat in her cage like crib lethargic and with 105 fevers. I can’t explain the horrible feeling that I had as parent. The lack of compassion made me feel as if my daughter didn’t matter. I was scared. I was left with so many unanswered questions. I wish I could say that the situation had a positive resolution, but that never happened and we left with no answers or apology. Just here’s your release forms and hurry out. A week later, my daughter ended up needing further testing. This led to me to more scheduling issues and of course dealing with more crabby people.
When it comes to healthcare, as a provider, compassion is a must. Patience is a must. The skill of listening and actually caring what the person is saying is a must. Sadly, these skills are hard to find. In today’s world of health care, patients are treated more like pieces of an assembly line than actual living, breathing beings.
The point of this story is that you should never be treated like this at Accelerated. Our therapists pride themselves in putting the patient first, literally. They understand the importance of making sure you feel like you matter and you aren’t just another chart. Your therapist should be your advocate and involve you in all decisions. They should do what is best for you, at all times, no questions asked. As a patient you and your family deserve this. No matter what.
