What do people like and dislike about their doctors?

The medical world… There’s the good, the bad, and the ugly. What makes a doctor’s office a bad one? What makes it so good you want to shout it out to the world? The following factors are crucial in determining how people feel about their doctors. We looked at online reviews from ZocDoc to gather statistical records. We have come to the following conclusions about what people look for when determining whether to leave a positive or negative review online surrounding their visit:

Words Common In Positive/Negative Reviews:

Data Source: ZocDoc

Priceonomic Data Studio only collected data from the reviews that were above three stars, and less than three stars. No neutral data was recorded.

The most important factor about the positive reviews of doctor’s offices is the level of overall friendliness. “Friendly” had a frequency of 5.10 words per 1,000 words. “Highly”; “thorough”; “questions”; and “excellent” were the second most commonly used words in positive reviews. Common trends in these reviews show that people who are leaving feedback do not solely focus on their experience with the doctor, but also with their experience with the office as a whole.

The top word that was noticed in negative reviews was “appointment.” Appointment showed up every 4.68 words per 1,000 words. Following “appointment,” the 4 top words associated with negative reviews were “insurance”; “results”; “patients”; and “waiting.” The majority of the negative reviews revolved heavily around appointment timing. Many doctors can have an amazing skillset that is undermined by the quality of their staff and/or scheduling department. Doctor’s offices should take their reviews into account and follow up with necessary actions to improve the overall quality of their offices to reflect their true skillset.

When searching for a doctor, it is important to browse reviews online to help steer your decision in the right direction. We are a virtual society and, with time, internet reviews are only going to make more of an impact on reputation. Keep in mind, when searching for a doctor, your personal experience may vary from others, so try not to base your decision solely off of a few bad online reviews.