Why Every Relationship in a Healthcare Office Matters

Why the word "gatekeeper" can mislead you

Sales culture often calls front-desk and office staff "gatekeepers," as if their role were to stand between you and the person you actually want to see. That framing quietly encourages representatives to treat staff as an obstacle, and staff can usually tell.

In reality, office staff are running a healthcare practice. They protect the schedule because patients depend on it. They manage representatives because the practice has asked them to. They are colleagues of the physician, not barriers in front of them.

Who you are really meeting in a healthcare office

• Receptionists and schedulers, who manage the day's flow and often see every visitor first.
• Nurses and medical assistants, who work closely with patients and providers throughout the day.
• Office and practice managers, who often set policies for how industry visits happen.
• Other providers in the practice, such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants, who may be involved in patient care decisions.
• Security, building and support staff, who notice how visitors carry themselves.

Each of these people experiences you differently, and each forms an impression that can travel through the office.

Office staff hear and remember your message

Staff often overhear part of your conversations, see the materials you leave and notice what you bring up each visit. Some will remember your message better than you expect. In some practices, staff may help keep information organised, or remind a provider that a representative mentioned something relevant.

Staff are also people with families and friends. Occasionally someone may remember something you shared because it seems relevant to a person they care about. When that happens, the appropriate response is to encourage them to ask their healthcare professional about it. Representatives should never suggest that office staff recommend prescription treatment on their own, and should not give personal medical advice.

Respect should never depend on job title

The most important principle here is also the simplest. If you are warm and attentive with the physician and distracted or curt with the receptionist, people notice. Offices talk, and a representative who treats people differently based on their perceived usefulness develops a reputation quickly.

Treat the person at the front desk with the same courtesy you would give the most senior physician in the practice. Not because it helps you, but because it is right. It also happens to be how trust is built.

Genuine relationships, not transactional ones

Staff can easily tell the difference between interest and strategy. A relationship becomes transactional when every friendly moment is really about getting something: a slot on the schedule, a quicker introduction, information about competitors. A genuine relationship is one where you would behave the same way whether or not it led anywhere.

What genuine looks like in practice

• Learn and use people's names, and remember what they've told you.
• Ask how their day is going, and listen to the answer.
• Respect their time as much as you respect the physician's.
• Follow office procedures without complaint, including waiting.
• Keep small promises, such as bringing back a resource someone asked about.
• Thank people for their help, every time.

Acknowledge the whole office

A healthcare practice is a team. When you speak only to the prescriber and ignore everyone else, you miss most of how the office actually works. Acknowledge the people you pass. Include nurses or other providers in conversations where it is appropriate. Ask the office manager how the practice prefers to work with representatives.

Doing this well tends to affect how you are remembered, how much trust the practice places in you, and, over time, the access you are given. For the access side of that picture specifically, see how to build better physician access.

Notice, Respect, Remember, Follow Through

Mistakes that damage office relationships

• Treating front-desk staff as a hurdle on the way to the physician.
• Being friendly only when you need something.
• Asking staff to bend office policy for you.
• Complaining about waiting, or about the practice, to anyone in the office.
• Sharing gossip about other practices or representatives.
• Implying that staff should recommend treatment or influence prescribing decisions.

Why this matters to Relationship-Based Selling

Relationship-Based Selling begins with the belief that trust is built in how you treat people, consistently, over time. The philosophy applies to every person you meet, not only the decision-maker. The stories collected in From the Field return to that idea again and again.

Keep learning