One Bad Apple...

Jeffrey Caso

13 years ago

Today was a day that both I and the entire staff has been dreading for a while. There is this one patient who just isn't very nice. She isn't nice on the phone, she isn't nice when she gets here and she just isn't nice to me. The last part I can handle. It's the way she makes the staff feel that upsets me. They work hard and do a great job. The impact that one negative person has on a person's self-esteem and the morale of the office is huge. Seeing her name in the appointment book has been downright depressing.

So, why do we deal with her at all? Why not just send her a dismissal letter and be done? Well, it's more complex than just that. Starting my practice from scratch more than two decades ago has been a wonderful thing for the most part. The down side is that so many patients have referred family and friends that each and every patient is related to or friends with so many others. It's hard to dismiss someone when all of their extended family members are patients and very good patients at that.

That is this person's situation. They know she is difficult, but blood is blood. So, for all intents and purposes, I am stuck with her unless I want to lose a group that numbers more than 30. So, like a cowboy breaking a horse we needed to find a way to break this person's personality down and take control of the situation. Today was the beginning of a new attempt to tame the wild beast.

The plan was a two-pronged attack. From the moment the front door opened we killed her with kindness. Something that she just wasn't used to at all, she generally got what she gave and that was aggravation; today it was different. Secondly, we just didn't give her an opportunity to complain and degrade anyone. We used a sensory overload technique which kept her engaged in a conversation at all times. Only this conversation was different. It was one-sided and she was barely able to get a word in. It seemed to be working great.

I was able to address her dental issue and there was never a lapse in the conversation. At all times we were overly kind. We finished up and off she went, dumbfounded. I think she needed to get away from us. Everyone felt as though we won today's battle. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? For now, all is well and we are all back to our happy selves, working the day away with small smirks on our faces.

It is truly amazing how one person can drag an entire office down. Identify these people and find a way to make it better. Sometimes dismissing them is the only option. Most importantly, talk to your staff and let them know that they should not be demeaned by these people and reassure them that you are happy with what they are doing. Good, healthy morale is vitally important to a properly functioning office. Put a value on it and work together in the open to keep things going in a positive direction. Don't let one bad apple spoil everything.