Sterling Practice Management, Glendale, CA: You’ll never believe this, but one of the best ways to increase treatment acceptance is to be quiet and listen. That’s right. Most of our practice owner clients talk too much and listen too little. They just do all the talking and never listen to the patient.

Here's what you should do: Ask a question and then just be quiet and listen. It makes a huge difference for them.

The next time you examine a patient or do a consultation, try this: Ask them why they came in. Ask them how bad the problem is and how often they experience it. Ask them what they hope to accomplish through your care, and so on. Listen. Don’t interrupt. Don’t get impatient. Don’t nod. Just listen.

Your communication skills have to be really good before you can sell anything successfully - let alone a whole course of treatment that goes beyond just the immediate problem. Communication skills can be taught and practiced, as can one’s “selling” techniques (it’s actually proper education). It is really very easy and actually fun, when you know how. The important thing is that patients have the right treatment for them when you are done with your treatment plan.

If you do nothing else, just listen to the patient’s concerns and acknowledge them and then tell them you can help. You’ll accomplish much more this way than through long, complicated lectures with long, complicated technical terms which no one but another doctor understands. They only leave the patient confused and in a fog.

You Can Learn Proper Communication Skills

Communication is actually a series of skills which can be taught. There are communication techniques which are based on proven workable technology. At Sterling Practice management, we deliver courses which teach these to our practice owners. The result is a practice owner who can effectively communicate in all situations. With improved communication comes higher productivity.

If you are having communication problems at your practice or simply want to move productivity to a new level, come to our next workshop or request our free practice solutions DVD.

Sterling Practice Management Senior Consultant