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VA Standard Phone Greeting
Share PrintAddressing a Moment that Matters most to Veterans in their outpatient journey, utilizing a Standard Phone Greeting creates positive and consistent experiences for Veterans, their families, caregivers, and survivors.
Origin:
August 2017, Veterans Experience Office
Adoptions:
69 successful, 37 in-progress
Recent Updates
Overview
Problem
The outpatient Veterans’ Journey Map identifies telephone contact as a pain point when using the VA system. Veterans often experience anxiety when they cannot reach the correct department, which leads to confusion and increased call time.
“I just feel that over the phone is very time-consuming. It takes a while to get to the area that you’re trying to rea ... The outpatient Veterans’ Journey Map identifies telephone contact as a pain point when using the VA system. Veterans often experience anxiety when they cannot reach the correct department, which leads to confusion and increased call time.
“I just feel that over the phone is very time-consuming. It takes a while to get to the area that you’re trying to reach.” - Veteran See more
“I just feel that over the phone is very time-consuming. It takes a while to get to the area that you’re trying to rea ... The outpatient Veterans’ Journey Map identifies telephone contact as a pain point when using the VA system. Veterans often experience anxiety when they cannot reach the correct department, which leads to confusion and increased call time.
“I just feel that over the phone is very time-consuming. It takes a while to get to the area that you’re trying to reach.” - Veteran See more
Images
Links
- Direct link to VA PX SharePoint site (may have to request access) Standard Phone Greeting PX Toolkit
Solution
In response, the VA PX Office developed the Standard Phone Greetings for staff when Veterans call their health care facility. The Standard Phone Greetings provides Veterans with the information they need and delivers a good experience. These standard greetings focus on clear, concise communication, so Veterans know precisely when and why something is being d
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In response, the VA PX Office developed the Standard Phone Greetings for staff when Veterans call their health care facility. The Standard Phone Greetings provides Veterans with the information they need and delivers a good experience. These standard greetings focus on clear, concise communication, so Veterans know precisely when and why something is being done (like transfers or being placed on hold). These include a standard phone greeting when talking directly with Veterans or their family members, On-Hold Phone Etiquette, Call Transfer Etiquette, and a Standard Voicemail Greeting. These standards in phone etiquette keep the patient experience at the forefront of communication between VA and Veterans, setting expectations and reducing patient anxiety. This is especially important during a customer’s initial telephone contact with an organization.
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Results
The Standard Phone Greeting is currently used widely in VHA and can be quickly adopted by other VA organizations. Veterans know what to expect from their health care. Communication with Veterans is consistent, uses plain language, and invites engagement. Veterans feel confident that they are being listened to and heard.
The Standard Phone Greeting initiat ... The Standard Phone Greeting is currently used widely in VHA and can be quickly adopted by other VA organizations. Veterans know what to expect from their health care. Communication with Veterans is consistent, uses plain language, and invites engagement. Veterans feel confident that they are being listened to and heard.
The Standard Phone Greeting initiative may also improve certain HCAHPS scores:
• “Would you recommend this hospital to your friends and family?” A consistent and clear telephone interaction could improve Veterans’ willingness to recommend a particular facility.
• “Using any number from 0 to 10, where 0 is the worst hospital possible and 10 is the best hospital possible, what number would you use to rate this hospital during your stay?” A consistent and clear telephone interaction could improve Veterans’ overall impression of the facility.
ADDED BENEFIT: A standard phone greeting serves as a regular reminder of our commitment to delivering branded exceptional patient experiences. “All of the people that I have talked to on the phone were very polite and helpful.” – Veteran See more
The Standard Phone Greeting initiat ... The Standard Phone Greeting is currently used widely in VHA and can be quickly adopted by other VA organizations. Veterans know what to expect from their health care. Communication with Veterans is consistent, uses plain language, and invites engagement. Veterans feel confident that they are being listened to and heard.
The Standard Phone Greeting initiative may also improve certain HCAHPS scores:
• “Would you recommend this hospital to your friends and family?” A consistent and clear telephone interaction could improve Veterans’ willingness to recommend a particular facility.
• “Using any number from 0 to 10, where 0 is the worst hospital possible and 10 is the best hospital possible, what number would you use to rate this hospital during your stay?” A consistent and clear telephone interaction could improve Veterans’ overall impression of the facility.
ADDED BENEFIT: A standard phone greeting serves as a regular reminder of our commitment to delivering branded exceptional patient experiences. “All of the people that I have talked to on the phone were very polite and helpful.” – Veteran See more
Images
Metrics
- As of the FY25 Q1 PX Environmental Scan Results, 74.8% of VA Healthcare Systems have implemented the Standard Phone Greeting.
Diffusion tracker
Does not include Clinical Resource Hubs (CRH)
Implementation
Timeline
-
Week 1
Leadership Endorsement -
Week 2
Engage Frontline Supervisors -
Weeks 3-6
Frontline Training
Core Resources
| Resource type | Resource description |
|---|---|
PEOPLE |
|
Links
- To implement this tool at your facility, please see the Startup Guide and other supporting documents Standard Phone Greeting PX Toolkit
Risks and mitigations
| Risk | Mitigation |
|---|---|
| Monitoring and Quality Assurance | Adding utilization of the greeting to performance plans. |
Contact
Comment
Comments and replies are disabled for retired innovations and non-VA users.
Email vapx@va.gov with questions about this innovation.
About
Origin story
Addressing the first Moment that Matters most to Veterans in their Outpatient journey, improving phone etiquette in answering phones to schedule appointments for Veterans.
Original team
Veterans Patient Experience (VA PX)
Donna Richardson
Patient Experience (PX) Facilitator
Standard Phone Greeting Toolkit moved from VA Pulse to SPO to this location: https://dvagov.sharepoint.com/sites/vha-patient-experience/PX_Toolkits/Standard_Phone_Greeting/default.aspx