​How Leaders Can Build Greater Trust In Their Industries

This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Dr. James Leonard, DO, FACEP, System Medical Director, Midwest Express Clinic.

gettyPicture this: After dinner on a Saturday night, someone starts feeling a sharp, stabbing pain in their throat. Thinking it might go away in the morning, they try to sleep it off. When they wake up Sunday morning, however, the pain has gotten worse. They know they need to get medical help. But their primary care physician’s office isn’t open on Sundays. The emergency room is an option, but they worry about long wait times and an expensive bill. They know there’s an urgent care clinic around the corner, but they haven’t visited it before and are uncertain of its hours and quality of care. They could wait until Monday to schedule an appointment with their primary care doctor, but that would still take weeks to get seen.

This is just one example I’ve seen in my years practicing emergency medicine and leading urgent care organizations. These friction points and uncertainties have contributed to confusion in our healthcare system about where to go to get treated. Urgent care is a vital part of the healthcare ecosystem, but some people might perceive speed and convenience as coming at the expense of high-quality, personalized care.

That could not be further from the truth, and my team and I are working to turn around that perception of our industry by leading by example. Here are five guiding principles you can use to create a new narrative around your business, no matter your industry’s reputation.

Yes, urgent care is designed around speed, access and convenience. But some people interpret that as a trade-off: that faster means less personal, convenient means lower quality or walk-in means unpredictable cost.

​Convenience shouldn’t come at the expense of confidence.

​In urgent care, we should absolutely prioritize seeing patients promptly. But we should also take the time to listen to their concerns, answer their questions and clearly explain the plan for their care. These extra steps help patients feel at ease and confident about the process.

Uncertainty creates anxiety; transparency creates trust. That’s been a core realization and guiding principle for me as I’ve worked with our team to deliver a patient-centric experience. I recommend other leaders embrace the same principle.

Many people may feel that efficiency and personal attention are two priorities that are at odds, but they actually complement each other. Efficiency gives employees more time and attention for customers. At my organization, clear workflows and efficient systems give providers and staff more time to focus on their patients.

By identifying and removing obstacles, leaders can help their team members work more efficiently. In turn, that gives staff more clarity and presence, so they can engage with customers in a more connected and genuine way.

Changing perception problems starts with messaging, but it also requires delivering a customer-centric (in my industry, a patient-centric) experience that gives people a reason to think differently about an industry or business. For example, if a prospective patient sees an urgent care facility’s billboard highlighting high-quality care at affordable prices, then staff at that facility need to deliver on that promise.

I mentioned earlier that uncertainty creates anxiety, and transparency creates trust. That’s why it’s so important to set really clear expectations to build trust. One way to do that is to build transparency into your website and social media messaging. For example, we clearly list self-pay prices so that patients know before they go. We also list all the insurance providers we work with so patients feel reassured their visit will be covered by their insurance.

I strongly believe that, regardless of industry, transparency from the get-go is foundational to building trust.

I regularly visit our 58 locations so that I can get a firsthand look at what’s working right and what’s not on an operational level. It also lets me learn what our patients want based on the feedback we get from them in real time.

Being in the trenches with your staff is key. It enables you to see the challenges your team members are facing by working alongside them. That helps you be a more informed, supportive leader and a true partner.

A good patient experience shouldn’t depend on which clinic or provider a patient visits on any given day. No matter the industry you’re in, it’s important to invest in training, staffing and clear processes that are standardized as you expand your business.

Your reputation is earned through thousands of individual experiences. Never let growth compromise those experiences. You need to preserve the consistency and quality that you’ve built over many years.

As I said earlier, there’s a lot of confusion about how to best navigate the healthcare system. My team and I have prioritized addressing that for our patients.

As a leader, one of the best things you can do, regardless of your industry, is to help simplify the process for your customer. If your customer needs something your business can’t offer, help them take the next step. For example, in our case, when a patient needs a specialist, advanced imaging or hospital care, we make sure they get to the right place and make that process as seamless as possible. This is important because we see ourselves as part of the healthcare system, not separate from it.

As a business leader, you may not always be able to assist someone. But I encourage you to take that extra step to connect people with the resources they need. ​​​

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