Communication

Friday my wife underwent minor surgery at Lutheran Hospital in Cleveland. I wished her well at 6:00 AM as she was wheeled into pre-op and saw her again at 11:30 as she was released from recovery. The 5 1/2 hour wait could have been excruciating had it not been for the excellent communication provided by the surgical suite. The waiting room is equipped with a monitor showing the status of each patient so I knew exactly when she went from pre-op (9:00 AM) into surgery and surgery to recovery. In addition I got one verbal update via phone, and the doctor gave me a full in-person report at the conclusion of the successful surgery.

Many businesses could learn from the communication processes in place at this hospital. How often I have contracted to have a job done but have been totally in the dark as to the status of the job or when it would be completed. Wouldn’t it be great for a business to have a web site customers could log into at any time to learn the exact status of their jobs – supplemental, of course, to verbal updates? What a competitive advantage these companies would have as they improve customer satisfaction.

Will Limkemann
www.siqualtd.com