A woman books an appointment for shoulder pain and spends four days quietly worrying about whether she will be asked to undress, what she should wear, and whether she will have to explain herself in a gown to somebody she has never met.
She nearly cancels. Not because of the treatment, but because of a question she felt too silly to ask.
The checklist
Publish these and the first visit stops being a source of dread.
1. What to wear
Specifically. Comfortable clothing, what works well, what does not, and whether there is anything to avoid. Two sentences that settle several days of worry.
2. Whether anything needs to come off
Say it plainly, in whatever the honest answer is. Vagueness here is what causes the anxiety, and most patients are relieved by the actual answer.
3. Whether gowns or shorts are provided
And whether patients can bring their own. Some people would far rather arrive prepared than be handed something at the door.
4. Whether a chaperone can be present
The option, how to request it and that nobody needs to explain why. Publishing it is a mark of a practice that takes patients seriously.
5. What to bring
Reports, scans, referral letters, a medication list and anything from another practitioner. It makes the appointment considerably more useful.
6. The insurance details needed
Policy number, authorisation and what the patient must arrange beforehand, which is the ground in insurance and employer referral questions for clinics.
7. How early to arrive
And whether forms are completed beforehand or on arrival. People allow for the appointment and not for the paperwork.
8. Whether forms can be done in advance
Online, before the visit. It shortens the appointment, improves the information and is appreciated by anybody who dislikes filling in forms in a waiting room.
9. How long the first visit takes
Including the assessment and any treatment. Patients book an hour into a working day and are caught out.
10. Whether somebody can come with them
A partner, a friend or a parent, and whether they can be in the room. Many nervous patients will attend if they know they may bring somebody.
11. Whether children can come
For patients with no childcare, the answer decides whether the appointment happens at all.
12. Parking and access
Where to park, what it costs, how to find the entrance and whether there are stairs. Practical detail that prevents a late and flustered arrival.
12b. Whether treatment happens at the first visit
Patients dress for an assessment and are offered treatment, or arrive expecting relief and receive a conversation. Saying which normally happens lets somebody wear the right clothing, allow the right amount of time and arrive with accurate expectations about how they will feel when they leave.
12c. What to do if they are unwell on the day
People attend with a cold because they do not want to waste an appointment, and clinics would usually rather they did not. Publishing what to do, how much notice avoids a charge and how quickly it can be rebooked resolves a small dilemma that patients agonise over on the morning.
13. What happens on the day
The order of events, from arrival to leaving, which is the anxiety addressed in new patient questions before a first adjustment and specialist clinics and the questions before a first consultation.
14. Send it automatically after booking
In the confirmation, so nobody has to go looking, which is the mechanism in automating appointment scheduling with a chatbot.
Getting started
Publish what to wear, what happens and what to bring, then send it with every booking confirmation and answer at any hour. SpideyChat for chiropractic clinics answers from your published pages. Try SpideyChat on your own site, or read about confirmations on the features page.