How to Make Your Primary Care Office Look Awesome
Doctors aren't the best interior decorators, so I'm showing you a few ways you can warm up your office with some simple pieces of art, news articles, diplomas, and furniture.
An Accent Wall is a Must
Having an accent wall behind your desk is a nice way of inviting people into your office. This can be a wood accent wall, a tile accent wall, or simply a fresh coat of paint that is colorful. The idea is that you want to draw people in and make people feel welcome when they visit your office.
Having a Feature Wall Can Showcase You and Your Team, and the Work that You Do
Having an interesting feature in your conference room can be a nice way to feature some achievements or your team dynamic. We have a photo of our team during a ribbon cutting and we also have some awards we've won along the way, as well as a plant.
Make Sure You Have a Coat Rack Near Your Scale
Having a coat rack near your scale is important - this allows patients to take off their coats and shed some of that extra weight when they have their weight measured.
Diplomas and Newspaper Articles About Your Practice Can Add Legitimacy to Your Office
Near the exam rooms, it would be nice to hang a newspaper clipping that features you or your office in the local news. We used a company called 'that's great news' to create a sleek version of two of our different media features. That gives us some legitimacy for our prospective patients when they tour the office - they will look at these articles and know that we're vouched for by the local news and that we've been around long enough to have some press materials.
Additionally, hanging your diploma or board certification near your exam room can help patients to know that you're board certified and that you have completed all the steps necessary to be a fully certified primary care physician. Keep these at eye level and, if you can, use the same framing material or the same frame shop for each diploma or board certification so you have nice consistency across these diplomas.
Family and Vacation Photos Above Your Desk Are Great, Too
Finally, above your desk in your office is a good place to keep family, friend, travel, or vacation photos. This will warm up your space and make it more comfortable for you to work, and this will perhaps remind you of why you work or hint at a deeper purpose.
Best of luck with your practice space and best of luck in making it your own!
- Dr. Paul Thomas with Plum Health DPC in Detroit, Michigan