H.E.A.R.T.

What is H.E.A.R.T. ?

• Communicate with H.E.A.R.T. is the foundation of the Cleveland Clinic’s delivery of service excellence that provides expected service behaviors and a service recovery model.
• H.E.A.R.T. is used throughout the Cleveland Clinic health system and empowers employees to address patients’ concerns and questions, responding in a way so that the person feels he or she was responded to with care and truly heard.
• H.E.A.R.T. benefits both employees and patients while impacting employee engagement and patient satisfaction. Studies have indicated a direct correlation between employee engagement and patient satisfaction.
• Complaint volume as reported by the Cleveland Clinic's Ombudsman Office decreased dramatically, likely due to their service excellence model and srevice recovery tool.
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How to Communicate with H.E.A.R.T.

• When emotionally upset, people are not likely to understand. They definitely don't want someone arguing with them. What they most want is someone to listen and to acknowledge their upset feelings. If they perceive that you are honestly trying to understand the situation and how they are feeling a potentially tense situation is usually diffused. If they don't feel understood or cared about, the situation can easily escalate.
• Hear: The first step is to listen to the patient. Let them talk, and simply listen. Sometimes a patient just wants to vent. Of course, other times they have a real problem that needs solving. If they can just get it off their chest, it's likely they'll be much more open to your solutions. Show compassion and positive body language.
• Empathize: Empathize by articulating to the patient what they are feeling and validate it. To do so you could say, “I can see how upsetting this is to you," "I can hear how frustrated you are." "I can appreciate how frustrated you must be." By naming the emotion, expressing understanding and placing yourself in the patient's place, you begin the process of diffusing the situation.
• Apologize: Apologize for their experience. Be genuine and sincere. Apologize for experiences, not acts "we are very sorry that you feel.." "we certainly regret the frustration that this has caused you." To make it more powerful, add a little of empathy.
• Respond: The foundation to most complaints is the disconnect from what was expected and what actually happened. This is your chance to reestablish an expectation and deliver on it. Taking the appropriate action can only be done if you really hear the problem, fully understand the customer’s feelings and combine it with a sincere apology. Respond immediately if possible. If you are unable to address the issue immediately, let the patient know what you will do and the time frame to expect.
• Thank: Thank the patient for the opportunity to correct the problem.