What does your clinic do to promote patient retention?

[mxems]

I'm curious what different clinics do to try and keep their patients at their unit? I'm a firm believer that the first part is the people. The techs and nurses. But I'm talking about the little things that are unique that maybe not everyone has done.

Decorations in the clinic?

Games with the patient?

Do you have coffee in the lobby?

Do you give Christmas gifts?

Do you have art on the walls as opposed to the pictures that you get from corporate?

Do you have couches in the lobby as opposed to hard chairs?

Do you have magazines in the lobby?

Do you have pictures of the staff up in the lobby?

Do you have the special heated chairs that massage?

What unique thing does your clinic do that seems to bring a smile to the patients, or make them laugh, or make them feel at home, or that make them feel like family?

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

Once a month we have pt appreciation and we give pts little gifts and cards, the pts love it

It doesnt cost a lot but we try to have a theme

[MJB2010]

The staff all signs birthday cards for the patients, and we recognize and celebrate their birthdays. We have little contests with labs to encourage patient compliance and the patients seem to enjoy it. The winners get a balloon tied to their chair and it does make patients want to try harder. We are having a holiday party for the patients. We decorate the lobby for holidays to keep it seasonal. I think the patients themselves really do the most for retention. We have a lot of friendly patients that get to know each other. They like to chat and it is a social visit for them to see each other. Some are very welcoming to new patients which I think is really nice.

[just keep swimming]

We give out certificates and small gifts (key chains, candy) each month to patients with perfect attendance or excellent outcomes, they love it, has even been mentioned in a patients obituary as something they looked forward to each month. We play games like K or phos bingo with dietitians or RNs announcing on a karaoke machine. We have a subscription to nexflix and play a movie each shift. Right now we are doing phos football, MWF pts against TTS pts, team with best phos for the month scores a touchdown, certain % of improvement is a field goal and the vikings cheerleaders have agreed to make an appearance for the winning team. During winter our AA brings in an organ and plays seasonal music and we have a whole unit sing-a-long (26 chair unit and almost everyone participates...so fun). Birthdays and deaths are all recognized and celebrated (we have patients decide each year if the want to have a memorial in their name if they pass). And so much more! We have so much fun!

[mxems]

Nurse Nessa

Awesome ideas. I've been hit up by the clinical manager and Regional manager on ways to make our clinic a place our patients would not think twice about staying. I think out clinic excels greatly in our nursing and tech staff, but we lack a great deal on creativity and games and things of that nature. Our patient population if around 65-75 years old so we interact with a different generation to say the least. Very much set in their ways. We did bingo over thanksgiving. Were gonna do the lobby up for Christmas. Great ideas though.

Keep the ideas coming. I think these are things everyone and every clinic can benefit from.

Thanks Nessa

[just keep swimming]

You're very welcome! With your population, I bet the holiday music/sing-a-longs would go over great!