Improving Your Patient Experience
Providing a great patient experience is critical to building a successful aesthetic practice.
When first starting out in aesthetic medicine this can be overlooked as, understandably, new injectors concentrate more on their technique. However, as we’ve said many times, patients will always remember how you make them feel as well as their treatment outcome. Therefore, ensuring a positive patient experience should be considered just as important.
Dr Jaymi Lad, clinical trainer at Harley Academy in Manchester, aesthetics specialist and clinic owner, has been nominated for Best Patient Experience and Transformation at the 2021 Safety in Beauty Awards. Winners will be announced next month.
Here she gives her best insights and advice for improving your patient experience…
What is your best tip for making patients feel comfortable prior to their first filler appointment?
I find doing a thorough consultation helps to relieve any pre-treatment anxieties. This includes discussing the whole treatment process and aftercare. Take time to talk through potential complications and how we might manage them. Spending that little bit of extra time to thoroughly consult your patient beforehand really prepares them for treatment, especially if they are new to injectables.
As a Level 7 graduate, how do you communicate your level of training to patients and do you think it helps to reassure them?
I think being vocal about your training and qualifications is really important and absolutely helps to reassure the patient. It’s important to your patients to know you’ve had the correct training. I introduce myself and my background right at the start of the consultation to ensure clarity regarding my skills and background right from the start.
Give us your best tip for creating a great patient experience…
Listen to your patient and take the time to talk through any concerns and anxieties they might have about the treatment or aftercare. Bad experiences tend to be those where the patient feels the treatment was rushed, where they have been poorly informed of the treatment process and not listened to.
Learn from your mentors
As you can see from Dr Jaymi’s tips, creating a reassuring patient experience doesn’t need to be a huge project. A little care, preparation and really listening to your patients can make all the difference.
Mentoring, whether as part of our Level 7 Diploma in Botox and Dermal Fillers course or our 1:1 Injectables Training Sessions, presents a fantastic opportunity to hone these skills.
As many graduates will attest, our injectables mentoring with experienced, practicing aesthetics specialists, allows you to gain invaluable insights into more than just injecting techniques. Get the most out of these sessions by asking any questions you may have about being an aesthetic practitioner for meaningful, holistic development.
One-to-one training offers a unique, hands-on opportunity to build your patient care approach and try out what works, whilst under supervision. So, by the time you’re ready to start practicing alone, you are confident in both the treatments you offer and your patient experience.
For further advice – or simply to get more ideas as everyone will have their own suggestions – in addition to asking your trainers, you can ask your peers and more experienced practitioners on the medical aesthetics professional networking platform, Comma. All licensed aesthetic doctors, dentists, nurses or midwives can join the main platform, whilst access to the exclusive Harley Academy Comma is restricted solely to our students. Access for current students can be arranged by contacting student services.
