Transforming Patient Experience Through Research and Service Design
Research-backed service design for patient experience
OrthoCarolina
Patient Experience
Who They Are & Why This Moment Mattered
A major orthopedic care provider operated 30+ clinics across a large metropolitan region. They served thousands of patients every month, from athletes to retirees to children receiving specialty care. Their clinical reputation was strong - excellent surgeons, high-quality medical outcomes, and deep community trust.
But the non-clinical experience told a different story. Waiting rooms were inconsistent across locations. Check-in processes varied widely. Communication felt uneven. And as patient expectations shifted toward convenience, hospitality, and clarity, leadership recognized they needed a more modern, welcoming, and consistent experience across every touchpoint. This was a moment of truth: the care was excellent, but the experience needed to catch up.
The Real Problem & What Was at Stake
The initial request was to analyze their current patient experience. But the real issues ran deeper:
- •The waiting room experience varied dramatically from clinic to clinic
- •Staff had no unifying service standard or hospitality playbook
- •Parents, families, and post-injury patients often felt anxious or confused
- •The environment inside clinics didn't reflect the quality of the medical care
- •Leadership lacked clarity on where to invest for the highest impact
If the experience didn't improve, the organization risked eroding patient satisfaction, increasing operational friction, and losing ground to competitors investing in more modern care models.
Constraints & Starting Point
We began with clear constraints:
- •An eight-week timeline to research, analyze, and define a service strategy
- •Clinics with different layouts, staffing models, and operational realities
- •A mix of patient demographics with varying needs and expectations
- •Staff who were stretched thin and needed realistic, doable improvements
- •A leadership team eager for clarity but requiring evidence-backed recommendations
How We Approached It
We approached the work as a focused research and experience design sprint. A small team visited clinics, spoke with staff, interviewed patients, and analyzed the journey from appointment scheduling to the moment patients walked out the door.
AI helped accelerate thematic analysis from interviews, cluster insights across clinics, and synthesize patterns. Human judgment focused on identifying the emotional moments that shaped patient perception - anxiety, confusion, boredom, relief - and designing improvements around them.
Every week, we delivered clear artifacts: journey maps, insight summaries, experience principles, and pilot recommendations.
What We Did
Conduct Field Research Across Multiple Clinics
We observed patient check-ins, intake workflows, waiting room dynamics, communication patterns, and staff interactions. We interviewed staff, providers, and patients to understand where the experience felt strong and where friction appeared. Clear patterns emerged: confusing signage, outdated waiting rooms, bottlenecks at check-in, and inconsistent hospitality practices.
Identify Moments That Matter in the Patient Journey
We synthesized findings into a journey map showing the moments that most influenced perception: arrival and check-in, waiting room experience, first staff interaction, communication clarity, navigating behind-the-scenes spaces, and discharge and follow-up. We identified which moments created anxiety, confusion, or frustration - and which created confidence and reassurance.
Develop the Patient Experience Strategy
We created a strategy that focused on improving clarity through signage and wayfinding, elevating the waiting room environment, introducing hospitality-first training for staff, standardizing communication scripts and expectations, and reducing cognitive load for new patients. This provided a clear, practical roadmap based on both emotional and operational realities.
Pilot Key Enhancements in a Flagship Clinic
We worked with the team to pilot improvements, including a redesigned waiting room layout with better seating and flow, updated signage for clarity, enhanced check-in workflows, hospitality training for frontline staff, and small experience upgrades that made the environment more welcoming. Feedback from patients and staff during the pilot helped refine the broader plan.
Deliver a Scalable Roadmap for Systemwide Improvements
We synthesized the work into a rollout plan that detailed which improvements should be standardized across all clinics, how to sequence rollouts by clinic type and complexity, how to operationalize new service standards with training and protocols, and what KPIs leadership should monitor. This allowed the organization to scale improvements sustainably.
The Outcome
Before
A high-quality clinical provider limited by inconsistent service experiences, uneven environments, unclear communication, and outdated waiting rooms. Patients often felt anxious, confused, or uncertain before seeing a provider.
After
A clear, research-backed patient experience strategy that elevated the waiting room environment in the pilot clinic, improved clarity, communication, and flow, empowered staff with hospitality-aligned behaviors, created alignment among leadership on priority improvements, and provided a roadmap for scaling changes across all locations. Patients in the pilot location reported stronger first impressions and greater overall satisfaction.
What Changed Inside the Organization
The engagement helped leadership see the patient experience holistically, not just as isolated operational issues. Staff felt supported, not judged. Teams gained shared vocabulary for describing patient needs. Clinics began thinking more intentionally about the emotional arc of each visit. Importantly, the organization saw how small, practical improvements - done consistently - could materially change how patients felt walking through their doors.
Why This Story Matters
Healthcare organizations often excel clinically but struggle to scale a consistent, welcoming, human-centered experience across locations. When patient experience is addressed with the same rigor as clinical quality, the results are transformative. This project shows how research, thoughtful design, and practical pilots can turn friction into confidence - and help healthcare teams deliver care that feels as good as it is clinically effective.
Key Takeaways
Clinical excellence alone does not guarantee patient satisfaction
Small environmental improvements can dramatically shift patient perception
Staff empowerment and training drive consistent service delivery
Pilots de-risk systemic changes and build organizational confidence
Services Delivered
Ready to create your success story?
Let's talk about how we can help you achieve similar results.