Hire Patient Liaisons
Patient liaisons advocate for patients. They closely work with patients and their families to listen to their concerns and address their needs during their stay at the hospital or healthcare facility. When the need arises, patient liaisons also escalate complaints from patients or their families regarding their treatment, healthcare professionals, or overall hospital experience.
Working as a patient liaison requires patience, communication skills, and professionalism. Given the nature of their work, patient liaisons must establish and maintain a good relationship with their patients, their patients’ families, hospital members, departments, and management.
When recruiting a patient liaison, hiring managers look for specific qualities in candidates. A job description is the first opportunity for employers to introduce their organization to candidates. What is the mission of your healthcare facility? Do you have any special programs for specific treatments? How many patients do you serve on a monthly or yearly basis? Share some interesting facts about your organization to pique the interest of candidates.
Know where to post your job description. Nowadays, almost everybody is online and on the lookout for great opportunities. Place your job announcements on hiring platforms, niche industry groups, online communities, and social media sites.
Responsibilities of a Patient Liaison
Patient liaisons establish rapport with patients and their families. By conducting patient interviews, patient liaisons find out about their hospital experience and ask if they have any inquiries or complaints about their treatment or any healthcare team members or staff.
Any patient feedback, positive or negative, should be received fairly by the healthcare facility. Should there be any complaints, it is up to patient liaisons to communicate the issues to the concerned department or healthcare team members. Additionally, patient liaisons are in charge of initiating an investigation while maintaining professionalism and objectivity. Throughout the investigation, patient liaisons act as mediators between the patients and the hospital members, department, and management. They update the patients and their families regarding their progress and ensure that they receive the best care possible. If the patient gets discharged from the healthcare facility before the investigation is concluded, patient liaisons maintain communication through follow-up calls.
Additionally, patient liaisons consult and collaborate with the hospital management and other healthcare providers to further improve the quality of patient care. They help identify opportunities to streamline processes that can positively impact the overall experience of patients.
Skills and Qualifications of a Patient Liaison
To qualify as a patient liaison, candidates must possess a professional and compassionate attitude with excellent active listening, communication, and customer service skills. Patient liaison candidates typically have a bachelor’s degree in social work, psychology, or a related field. Knowledge of medical terms and CPR qualifications are required. Prior work experience of two years in patient care in a healthcare setting is ideal.
The goal of patient liaisons is to let the voice of the patient be heard. In this way, they contribute to improving not just patients’ experience but also the quality of the overall healthcare organization.
