The patient isn't always right: How to handle difficult conversations

The patient may always deserve empathy—but that doesn't mean the patient is always right.

Every optometry practice has difficult patient interactions: the patient who shows up for an appointment that isn't on the schedule, the person demanding an exception to a policy, or the patient expecting the practice to absorb the consequences of something that simply isn't its responsibility.

In this episode of The Optometry Success Podcast, we role-play two real-world situations and break down how practice owners and their teams can respond without becoming defensive, immediately giving in, or escalating the situation.

We discuss the importance of tactical empathy, giving patients choices, anchoring expectations, and empowering team members to make decisions without unnecessarily involving the doctor. Chad also explains why doctors may actually be the wrong people to handle these situations: our desire to solve the urgent problem in front of us can cause us to forget everyone else affected by that decision.

That leads us to the "tyranny of the urgent"—when the loudest, most immediate problem takes priority over everything else. Saying yes to one demanding patient might simultaneously mean saying no to the eight other patients on your schedule, your team, your profitability, and your own sanity.

And sometimes, even after doing everything right, the patient still won't accept the answer. We leave that question for our next conversation: What happens when empathy, flexibility, and reasonable solutions still aren't enough?

NBS (Next Best Step): Identify one common situation in your practice where your team feels pressured to make exceptions for patients. Define the boundary, decide who has the authority to handle it, and give your team a framework for responding with empathy—without automatically saying yes.

Have a question for us to address in a future episode? Submit it here!

Resources:

The Optometry Success Podcast, Episode: Extended Warranty - Your Profits for Patient Peace of Mind

Book: Never Split the Difference

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