The medical market is very competitive today. Make sure your office staff is practicing good manners along with good medicine. Here are my top 20 tips for a more polite staff.

1. Send thank you notes to new patients and referring physicians for choosing your practice. Handwritten thank you notes are never out of style and are a mark of distinction…they say you took the time to show your appreciation. Always add a personal line or two to a preprinted message.

2. In the business world, respond to your work E-mails within 24 hours or with an auto responder message.

3. Acknowledge that you received an E-mail even if it does not require much of a response.

4. Title your E-mails in the subject line.

5. Don’t send other people’s e-mail addresses when forwarding or sending info without their permission.  Use the BCC line when sending e-mail to multiple recipients.

6. If you are crafting a response before the other person is done speaking, you are not listening fully to what they have to say.” Pause before responding.

7. Always excuse yourself before leaving a patient in the exam room, on the telephone, or in any conversation. We call this “taking your leave.”

8. Never return rudeness with rudeness.

9. Smiling comes through in the tone of your voice on the telephone. Over 70% of the message is conveyed in the sound of your voice.

10. Smile! It takes more facial muscles to frown than to smile.

11. Pause for a moment before answering the telephone. This will allow you to shift gears and focus on the caller.

12. Sitting down and making eye contact while interviewing patients leaves a more favorable impression than standing and you are perceived to spend more time with the patient.

13. Eye contact should be made 40-60% of the time in conversation. Less than that suggests you’re not paying attention… more than 60 % makes people feel uncomfortable.

14. Acknowledge the special events in your patient’s lives with a note. Send sympathy notes when patients or their family members die.

15. What Not to Wear in the workplace…crocs, flip-flops, cleavage; on the top or the bottom and no bare midriff.

16. Avoid “tramptastic” skirt lengths.  More than 1 -2 “above the knee is too short for work.

17.“Imagine yourself in the patient’s position… how would you feel?”

18.“Create a friendly atmosphere, but avoid a party atmosphere in your office.”

19.“Never let a patient hear you complain.”

20.“Avoid using superlatives such as, “the doctor never” does something. Better to say, “doctor prefers ,“  this leaves room for the exception to a rule.”