It is well known that the key moment in most relationships, and often the most memorable, is the introduction. This is certainly true in medicine and particularly true in plastic surgery. It is true that patients come in on their own will but it is still a potentially scary and uncomfortable experience. They make themselves do it because they desire the service. Whether they get that service from one plastic surgeon or another as a lot to do with how comfortable they feel. A warm welcome engages the patient and many business studies have shown a direct correlation between how welcome people feel and their satisfaction with their service. It is hard to imagine how that first 30 seconds could frame hours of later experiences…but it is true.
On entering the room in every new consultation and or in seeing a patient after surgery, I always think about exuding warmth…..plus it makes me feel comfortable too. I have seen 1000s of patients, but each patient may only ever see one plastic surgeon. I try to make it one they will remember.
Dr Barry Eppley
Indianapolis, Indiana