12 tips to improve patient experience you can use right now

The care journey is a series of interconnected moments, from a potential patient’s first online search to their follow-up care. Optimizing each of these touchpoints is the key to building a thriving practice. A superior patient experience directly leads to greater patient satisfaction, stronger patient loyalty, and higher patient retention.

The stakes are high. According to Tebra’s 2025 Patient Perspectives survey, 33% of patients have left a provider in the last 2 years. Their top reasons point directly to experience failures: a poor interaction with the provider (42%), long wait times (51%), and a bad front desk experience (46%) are all leading causes for a patient to switch.

By focusing on patient-centered care, you can increase patient loyalty, improve physician satisfaction, and even drive better health outcomes. This guide explores 12 patient experience initiatives that clinicians and staff members can take to improve patient experience at your practice.

A modern patient’s care journey begins online. A clunky or outdated online presence creates friction before they even book an appointment.

Your practice’s online presence — including your healthcare website and your online directory profiles — is a prospective patient’s first impression of your practice.

To help patients understand what to expect, make sure your medical practice website offers clear, consistent information. Include an about page, a contact page, and pages for each individual healthcare service you provide. Showcase high-quality photos of your practice (both interior and exterior) so that potential patients can get a sense of what to expect. Don’t forget to include glowing testimonials from current patients as social proof that will build immediate trust.

When choosing a doctor, 29% of patients say provider information on third-party websites contributes, according to Tebra’s data. This means it’s important to claim and update your profiles across online business and healthcare directories. Make sure that your name, address, and phone number are identical across each listing. Double-check your hours, practice URL, and service descriptions for consistency, too.

Give patients the freedom to book appointments online. Forcing them to call during business hours creates an unnecessary barrier. Tebra found that for 43% of patients, online booking makes the biggest difference in their experience as a patient. For 40%, the ability to reschedule online is important.

Investing in a modern online scheduling system integrated with your EHR meets a critical patient demand and frees up your front desk staff to focus on the healthcare experience for the patients already in your office.

Patients are busy. Help them stay on track with automated appointment confirmations and reminders. These notifications show that you value their time and are a proven way to reduce costly no-shows and last-minute cancellations.

Patients now prefer to receive these notifications, especially appointment-related reminders, via text rather than other patient communication methods. In fact, they prefer text messages for reminders about appointments (48%) and reminders to book appointments (41%), according to Tebra’s 6th annual Patient Perspectives survey. Additionally, when scheduling an appointment, 50% of patients want to receive a reminder or confirmation right away.

Automated text message reminders can help meet these patient preferences without burdening your staff. Send confirmations via text or email right after patients book. Then send a reminder 3 days before a scheduled appointment, asking them to confirm. If a patient doesn’t confirm, send another reminder the day before, and another one an hour before the appointment. 

Cut down on the tedious tasks by giving patients the option to fill out patient intake forms online before their visit. According to Tebra’s data, 32% of patients say that digital forms before the visit make the biggest difference in their experience, while 31% are frustrated by forms that don’t save or work on mobile.

Digital, mobile-friendly intake forms in advance not only improve their experience but also ensure your staff has their information in the system ahead of time, making the entire check-in process smoother, reducing patient stress, and ensuring data accuracy, all of which lead to better quality of care.

From the welcome at the front desk to the interaction with the care team and staff members, the in-office patient experience is where relationships are truly built or broken.

Patient engagement begins the moment someone opens your door. A warm welcome from your front office staff helps set the tone for care delivery. This is critical, as Tebra’s data reveals a bad front desk experience is enough to make 46% of patients consider switching healthcare providers. Simple gestures like saying hello, smiling, and being friendly during check-in help to create a positive relationship.

One way to achieve this is to be sure that all of your office employees, particularly your trained medical personnel, act according to your practice’s ethos. Ensure your staff are thoroughly trained and have the support they need to do their jobs seamlessly. When your team is comfortable, they’ll make your patients comfortable.

Your waiting room shouldn’t feel cold and clinical. Instead, fill it with comfortable seating, use warm lighting to create a more welcoming environment, and consider playing soothing music to help relax your patients. A calming environment can make a visit feel more like a short self-care break from a hectic day and less like an inconvenience.

While some waiting is understandable, excessive delays show a lack of respect for your patients’ schedules. When asked what would make them instantly consider switching providers, 51% of patients named long wait times as a top reason, according to Tebra’s data.

Communication is the key to managing this. If you know that you’re running behind, instruct your staff to proactively tell patients about the expected delay in real time. They will appreciate the transparency.

Ultimately, patients come for your medical expertise and stay for your compassionate care. A poor provider interaction is the number one reason patients (68%) switch providers, according to Tebra's data.

Be mindful not only to provide a thorough examination, but also to display a warm and caring presence. Make eye contact, listen without interrupting, and ensure every patient leaves feeling heard and with a full understanding of their treatment plan and any interventions it contains.

The experience doesn’t end when the patient leaves. Thoughtful follow-up and ongoing engagement are what build lasting loyalty and better health outcomes.

After a visit, patients can be overwhelmed with information. Use your patient portal or a secure email to send a follow-up message summarizing their visit, outlining the next steps in their treatment plan, and providing clear instructions. 48% of patients want the ability to access visit summaries or test results online, according to Tebra’s data. This simple action shows you are invested in their well-being, improves their understanding, and leads to better health outcomes. It also enables patients to be stakeholders in their own care.

This is also the perfect time to ask for feedback. Including a link to a patient experience survey in your follow-up is effective, since the visit is still top of mind. Surveys can help with measuring patient experience and improving the quality of care; this will lead to happier patients (and better reviews) over time.

A practice’s online reviews are a public reflection of its patient experience, and it's crucial to monitor them. Plus, your response to patient concerns, reviews, and feedback, whether positive or negative, is just as important as collecting that feedback. Tebra’s data shows that 77% of patients read reviews before choosing a healthcare provider, making your online reputation a core part of your growth strategy.

Remember to always comply with HIPAA when you respond to reviews or comments online. Never confirm that a reviewer is a patient or mention any PHI such as their name, location, or any service they received.

Use your blog or social media profiles to share timely, helpful healthcare information. Consider what patients want to know about the treatments and services you offer. What are their most common questions? Use those topics to develop educational content that demonstrates your authority and keeps your practice top-of-mind between visits. The goal is to drive patients to your practice website so they can learn more about your healthcare services.

Email is a great way to communicate and engage in patient education. Use it to send regular newsletters with practice updates, promotional offers on services, or seasonal health tips. An open line of communication fosters a stronger patient-provider relationship and turns transactional visits into long-term loyalty.

Many factors go into creating a positive experience. Taking steps to improve patient experience will help increase their satisfaction, which, in turn, will lead to higher patient retention and a greater number of glowing online reviews.

Understanding why patients leave is the first step to keeping them. For a deeper look at the data, download Tebra’s free 2025 Patient Perspectives report on why patients are leaving providers.

TL;DR: Improving patient experience is about every touchpoint from online scheduling to the waiting room. Independent practices can boost satisfaction and retention by focusing on convenience, communication, and personalization.