The Intake

Insights for those starting, managing, and growing independent healthcare practices

How to celebrate Patient Recognition Week this February

Use Patient Recognition Week (February 1-7, 2025) to strengthen relationships with your patients, enhance their healthcare experience, and show them how much you value their trust.

how to celebrate patient recognition week

At a Glance

  • Patient Recognition Week fosters patient-centered care, strengthens relationships, and improves trust, engagement, and health outcomes
  • Celebrate with tokens of gratitude, expressions of thanks, and engaging events like workshops or parties
  • Share how your practice has implemented patient feedback to demonstrate that their voices are heard and valued

Patient Recognition Week is an event taking place during the first week of February. For Patient Recognition Week 2025, this will fall from February 1-7. Celebrating Patient Recognition Week is a great opportunity to strengthen relationships with your patients, enhance their healthcare experience, and show them how much you value their trust in your services.

During the event, as a healthcare provider, the expectation is for you and your teams to offer greater attention to patients. Consider ways you can recognize them, engage them, and reflect on the stewardship of patient care.

In this guide, we'll dive into ways you can celebrate patient recognition all week long.

For more February observances, check out our February 2025 healthcare observances and marketing ideas guide here.

What is Patient Recognition Week?

Patient Recognition Week is an annual event that takes place during the first week of February. 

This event is a time to strengthen the bond between patients and healthcare professionals and build a more compassionate and patient-centered healthcare system. This means identifying ways to better care for patients and being proactive about accommodating their needs.

History and significance of Patient Recognition Week

National Patient Recognition Week was initiated by healthcare worker John O’Malley in 1995, who felt the need to specially dedicate a week to the many patients that those in his profession look after every day.

High-quality patient care is needed more than ever in the United States. The nation's healthcare spending is far higher than peer countries, according to Commonwealth Fund research, but still leads to the worst overall health system performance. The same research found that American patients live the shortest lives and have the most avoidable deaths.

Patient Recognition Week serves as a reminder to professionals in the medical field to commit to delivering excellent service and help protect the health of their patients.

Get the playbook

The importance of recognizing patients

Here are some important reasons to recognize patients.

Patient satisfaction

Recognizing patients is a way to show them that you both respect and appreciate them. When you achieve this recognition, you make your patient feel valued as individuals rather than just numbers. 

Acknowledging patients helps them become more engaged in their care — giving them motivation, comprehension, and skills to adhere to their care plans. An engaged patient is more likely to participate in follow-ups and preventive care, which can reduce complications, hospital readmissions, and overall healthcare costs.

A 2020 peer-reviewed study noted that the “engaged patient has a strong motivation to become more knowledgeable and more powerful.”

Loyalty and trust

Patients who feel recognized are more likely to develop a trusting relationship with you as their healthcare provider. Trust encourages patients to openly communicate their concerns, which means more accurate diagnoses and tailored treatments. Over time, this recognition cultivates a strong sense of loyalty and ensures that patients continue to seek care from providers who genuinely care about them.

It may not take a while for patients who don't feel loyalty to switch practices, either. 86% of patients surveyed in Tebra's 5th annual patient perspectives report said they will give only up to 2 chances after a negative experience before leaving for another practice. Every interaction with a patient matters.

Patient Perspectives Report

How to effectively celebrate Patient Recognition Week

Improve the connection between your team and the patients they serve with these Patient Recognition Week ideas.

  1. Offer tokens of gratitude

Consider offering small tokens of gratitude to your patients. These can include ideas like pens, notepads, reusable water bottles, or even stress balls branded with a kind message like "Thank You for Letting Us Care for You."

Giving away flowers or healthy snacks are also thoughtful gifts that can brighten their day and make them feel appreciated in your care. You can also deliver surprise perks during the week, like free coffee/tea in the waiting area or raffle drawings for small prizes (such as wellness kits or gift cards).

2. Express gratitude in person and digitally

Remembering to honor, listen to, and thank patients during their visits is key for this holiday. Consider having a session where you and your staff members write thank you cards that they can distribute to patients.

There are ways you can express gratitude digitally as well. Sending personalized thank you emails to each of your patients can go a long way in making them feel valued — and so can posting social media posts throughout the week that show how your organization supports patients.

A photo wall of patient success stories can add a personal element to your practice and reinforce your team's dedication to a great patient experience. If you have a practice blog, consider highlighting patient success stories.

3. Planning and organizing events

Complimentary educational workshops, wellness sessions, or Q&A events are all suggestions you can use to empower patients with knowledge about managing their health. Consider hosting a party at your practice (or another fun venue) with your team and invite patients and their families. Invite everyone for snacks and beverages, maybe even a special playlist.

4. Utilizing patient feedback

Continuously gathering feedback from patients is important — for Patient Recognition Week and all times throughout the year. Use this holiday to share updates about how you’ve acted on their suggestions and made improvements to your services.

This approach will demonstrate to your patients that you are actively listening to their thoughts, ideas, and concerns. 

Effortlessly collect feedback, respond to reviews, and create trust to attract and retain patients with Tebra's platform. Learn more here.

Patient Recognition Week: Your chance to enhance patient happiness 

National Patient Recognition Week raises awareness about the importance of patient-centered care, and its principles should inform care delivery each day of the year. When your healthcare practice successfully creates an environment where patients feel supported, understood, and valued, everyone wins.

Get the playbook
Subscribe to The Intake:
A weekly check-up for your independent practice

Becky Whittaker, specialist SEO copywriter

Becky Whittaker is a specialist SEO copywriter with over a decade of experience and an interest in healthcare and legal marketing. Becky believes that independent practices are critical because they have more opportunities to deliver better patient care and personalize patients’ experiences. She also has a personal connection to the healthcare industry, as her sister-in-law is a pediatrician.

Get expert tips, guides, and valuable insights for your healthcare practice