Thursday, May 31, 2012

The Receptionist



Two days ago, I met a woman at the Little League game. Her sister, who is morbidly obese, had decided to get a lap band procedure (bariatric surgery). She was in the 'watching a video and taking a seminar' phase and in the market for a good bariatric surgeon.

I work at a center of excellence in bariatric surgery. We have all the right equipment and protocols in place to handle this type of surgery with safety, and with all the right support to encourage the patient and increase the likelihood of success. One of the surgeons is female, a nice woman who truly cares about her patients, and often does follow up surgery on them if ever a gallbladder or appendix turns up. I made a referral to this group to the woman for her sister.

This prospective patient ran into 'Chelsea', on her first telephone call to the office. Chelsea was rude to her, implied she did not have good insurance to pay for it (the patient was willing to finance a loan for the surgery), and told her to 'stop reading those 800 number ads'.

Calling to seek bariatric surgery is a difficult call to make! This patient was crushed, and is never going to try for our facility again.

Time and again, in my experience as a patient, the clerks at the front desk are abysmal. Some look like they are from a gang, and scare me. Many 'forget' to call me 'Dr.' and instead use my first name. Many are flustered, and confused and overwhelmed by simple tasks in the office. I know of one surgeon who had to let go an excellent worker who had worked in the office for over twenty years. The worker had gone up the pay scale so much that the business could not afford her. 

What better place to apply Reiki than at the front desk? The receptionist on the phone? It would set the tone for the medical office and greatly increase the satisfaction of the patients and everyone working there! Feng Shui has been done in many an interior design for office space. But never a Reiki environment, complete with a crystal grid, to blast HEALING through the space. 

Why is it that the face of a business and an important point of contact with the life blood of the practice has such glaring flaws? Why is everyone so hardened?

I think a part of it is the dual responsibilities they face: 1) doctor and patient, and 2) insurance coverage and approval. Number 2 would drive anyone to the breaking point. Seriously. Insurance is a disservice to us all. Out of fear we purchase it. And the coverage is shrinking. I do not have maternity care, for example, but I am of child-bearing age. The coverage would be too expensive on my personal policy I carry for myself (I am 1099).  If you ask me, Reiki would be a tipping point in the insurance industry policy. How can they carry out their horrible rules and regulations in the face of everyone else being Reiki-wise? And knowing Truth? Everyone would call them on it. Again and again. 

So my vote for today, is for Reiki experience to spread outside the conventional Reiki session, beyond the anesthesia-Reiki interface in the O.R., past Reiki PACU, and into the medical offices themselves. 

Reiki has a place in this. You should see the love for animals at the Vet's clinic! The decor, the techs, the receptionists, the veterinarians...all across the board they share a love for animals.  Why is there a lack of love for humanity at the place where people need it the most?

Namaste,

Reiki Doc