By moving the front desk or 'chaos
centre,' as he calls it, away from patients
and redubbing it the 'Administration
Centre', the sound of phones, faxing,
discussions surrounding bookings,
scheduling and billing, are all taken
away. This increases the privacy for
staff to discuss details with patients,
while eliminating distracting noise
pollution.
"This frees up the floor staff to be
dedicated to the patient in front of
them and not be constantly interrupted
by the phone, couriers et cetera while
they are engaged with the patient,"
he said.
The office also differs in its office paging
system, as well as its hands-free
communication radios that allow
staff to respond to requests from their
colleagues swiftly and quietly, while
creating an intimate and more personalized hand off of the patient to
support staff, with information on the
patients' needs and who they are.
"This eliminates even more of the
background noise which most offices
are plagued with," he said. "My staff
can now alert each other when a
specific area needs more support."
The office has two separate greeting
areas, with one equipped with
refreshments for patients/companions,
alongside a second room for those
who have already seen a doctor,
which has also reduced traffic. The
8 EYE FOCUS | December Digital 2016
practice also has a dedicated contact
lens teaching and training area, with
a large diagnostic and retail inventory
that allows his business to provide
what his patients require, when they
need it.
DiBerardino said it was a significant
investment, but in a competitive
market, it's important to meet patient
needs so they will keep coming back,
rather than send them off to spend
money elsewhere.