This is a sample short report with recommendations.
This report is written at the request of the Head of Human Resources in order to investigate the growing number of customer complaints at the Queensville Medical Center. The information in the report is based on a week-long investigation into the matter by three members of the Human Resource Department. The three-member team observed medical and administration staff and carried out surveys with 300 patients. Recommendations are made in this report on how to reduce the high number of complaints at the center.
The Queensville Medical Center is a private medical facility that has been in operation for ten years. It employs 100 personnel consisting of twenty full-time doctors, sixty nurses and twenty administration or front-desk staff. Although awarded a certificate for customer service excellence by the Royal Medical Trust in its first year of operation, customer complaints have tripled over the previous three years.
One of the first things that the team noticed was the time spent by each patient waiting to see the doctor and during consultation. The average waiting time was 48 minutes, compared to the industry average of 18 minutes. Time spent in consultation with the doctor was an average of 4 minutes, compared to an industry average of 12 minutes. Patients were overheard complaining about both of these issues.
When the customer survey was carried out, it was found that the most common complaint was about the unfriendliness of the front counter staff. Respondents remarked that they were asked to fill in forms, even if in pain, and that the staff showed a lack of empathy. The average rating given to the front counter staff was 3.3 out of 10, compared to 7.5 for nursing staff and 8.2 for doctors.
The third issue relates to hygiene. It was found that toilets were only cleaned once per day even though the traffic for each toilet was between 200-300 visitors per day. Flies and cockroaches were observed in the men’s toilets on the third floor. On six out of ten visits to the toilets, the bins were overflowing and tissues and other waste materials were found on the floor.
Finally, many visitors complained that there were no Spanish-speaking staff available, and they felt unable to explain their ailments accurately in English. It is noted that the medical center is located in a district with a large minority of Hispanic residents – 45% according to the most recent census in 2018. Previously, there were two nurses acting as unofficial translators, but they both left in March 2019.
See Appendix A for the full results of the customer survey.
1. The waiting and consultation times were too long compared to industry averages.
2. The attitude and manner of the front counter staff caused complaints.
3. There were hygiene issues with the hospital toilets.
4. Hispanic patients faced communication issues.
1. The number of doctors on the floor at any one time should be increased to a minimum of 20. Doctors should be trained to spend more time listening to patient issues in full.
2. The front counter staff must be given customer service training to improve patient-staff relations.
3. Standard operating procedures should be put into place so that the toilets are cleaned once per hour. Pest control must be brought in once per month to deal with cockroaches and flies. The bins must be emptied each hour along with the cleaning.
4. Human Resources should prioritize hiring staff who can speak Spanish. There should be at least one nurse or front counter person who can speak Spanish on each shift.