A few months ago we conducted a fun survey to find out a little more about our customers’ habits – supplies they use, what they can’t live without, what they like to snack on, and so forth. See how these results compare with how your office operates. Note that the numbers don’t necessarily add up to 100% because we’re reporting only the top three or four most popular responses for each question.
Pulse of the office
Which of the following emotions best describes your practice?
- Happy go lucky (35%)
- Even keel (25%)
- Slightly silly (17%)
- Eternally frazzled (11%)
From these numbers, it looks like the vast majority of medical office workers have a pretty good time at work. That’s heartening, especially given how hard we know the jobs can be.
Color matters
Which Post-it® note color does your practice use?
- Yellow and pastels (39%)
- Neon (26%)
- Canary yellow only (25%)
When it comes to Sharpie® markers, 71% use basic black, but a full 10% say they need “every color of the rainbow.”
Office supplies
Pick the office essential you can’t live without.
- Post-it® notes (36%)
- Paper clips (28%)
- Correction tape (10%)
- Which office supply can you never seem to find when you need it?
- Pens (29%)
- Stapler (10%)
- Paper clips (5%)
- Which office supply will you not let out of your sight?
- My favorite pen (66%)
Food and drink
Sweets won out over salty snacks as the office preference (49% versus 21%), but 19% of respondents say they don’t have time for snacks at all. This group must include the “eternally frazzled” from above.
When it comes to providing waiting patients with something to drink, 45% offer water, 19% offer coffee, and 35% don’t offer anything at all. We’re imagining the 35 percenters run such a great schedule that their patients don’t wait long enough to get thirsty.
To our great surprise, only 10% of practices have a Keurig® coffee maker for patients to use. These cup-at-a-time brewers are popping up all over the place, and for a good reason. Check them out here. They’re great!
Paper Clips rule
We enjoyed the survey results most when it came to the question about how offices find unique ways to use ordinary supplies. Paper Clips clearly won when it comes to versatility. Here are our top five favorite responses:
- To unlock the door (hope the alarm didn’t go off!)
- To repair eyeglasses (makes sense)
- As hair clips (this could start a whole new trend)
- As a dust bunny extractor (we’re trying this at home)
- To keep a hem in place (mother wouldn’t approve, but you do what you gotta do)
Who knew paper clips were so handy for so many different things? Thanks to everyone who participated in this very important (wink!) survey. We had fun and hope you did, too.
