Can we listen better than doctors?
Having just read When Doctors Don’t Listen: How to Avoid Misdiagnoses and Unnecessary Tests, I’m once again reminded of how many parallels exist between technical support and medicine.
The gist of the book is to decry what the authors call the cookbook approach to medicine, which consists of following preset “pathways” to rule out potentially dangerous (but very rare) conditions in an attempt to avoid lawsuits, without vigorously seeking a diagnostic. The most relevant part of the discussion, for us in support, is the importance of the dialog with the patient/customer.
- Only 20% of patients are able to describe their symptoms without interruption. (This in an ER setting, where doctors can be, understandably, less patient than elsewhere) and the average time to interruption is a meager 12 seconds.
- As a result, the wrong “pathway” can be selected since not all symptoms are taken into account. (I also had the feeling that the pathways are not as targeted as they could be).
- Little effort is made in pursuing a differential diagnosis: what else could cause the problem, beside the current hypothesis?
- Not surprisingly, pattern recognition is weak for new doctors, better for experienced doctors. After all, medical students attend just one class of “Practice of Medicine” or POM, which encompasses both working with patients and conducting medical exams.
Can we do better in support? I think so! Here are a few ideas, adapted from the book:
1. Allow the customer to tell the whole story rather than jumping into a checklist too soon. (Checklists are very useful, but only when they apply to the situation at hand.)
2. Encourage the customer to participate in the troubleshooting process and make the differential diagnosis together
3. Apply tests rationally — only test what can help make the differential diagnosis
Do you train support engineers on how to partner with customers? Do tell us by adding a comment. (And if you do not we can help.)
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