How should the front-office team handle the question of whether a patient actually read the pre-consultation information packet?
Move past it without dwelling. When the patient arrives for the consultation, the front office greets them warmly and asks if they had a chance to review the packet materials. Some patients answer honestly, having read everything, having skimmed, or having ignored the packet entirely. Some patients tell a small social-pleasantry lie about having read it when they did not. The right response is the same regardless. The team member says: “Great. I will go ahead and review what is going to happen today so we are all on the same page.” Then briefly summarize the visit flow. The phrasing covers all cases. The patient who read the packet hears it as a refresher. The patient who did not now gets the essential context anyway. No embarrassment is created. The visit starts on solid footing. The team member does not need to interrogate the patient’s pre-work or assume anything about it.
If the answers you are finding here resonate with you, my team and I work with a small group of clients each year. The next step is a complimentary Discovery Consultation and Practice Review with Dr. McAnally.