So much is being said about the future of healthcare being “customer-centric” or “patient focused.” After all, in the business of healthcare, the patient is the customer, right? And if we are going to build a true retail mindset in healthcare, shouldn’t the patient come first? I think the answer is No. Those that should come first are our own employees, because you cannot build customer loyalty unless your own people have developed the passion and commitment to get you there.

In the June issue of Harvard Business Journal, a study showed that "If you invest in improving your employees' view of your firm's corporate character, those positive attitudes will rub off and boost customers' opinions of the company. That will drive growth. It sounds simple, but too many organizations focus on what customers think - to the exclusion of what employees think.”

In field interviews with 4,700 customers and employees of 63 businesses, it was determined that “service companies are on average more likely to be growing if employees' opinions of the company are better than customers." In one story, a department store refurbished at great cost, but found no impact on sales. They found that the renovation had done nothing for staff members; the restrooms were still drab and the stockrooms were smaller than before.

What does this mean for those of us in healthcare? We are doing a great job of adding valet parking and Wi-Fi to our locations and we are working diligently to improve our patient satisfaction scores. But what we should really be focused on is our own people, making sure they are satisfied and empowered and have the tools and resources to do their jobs. The customers will come.