You Got a Bad Review, Now What? A How-To Guide for Patient Experience Leaders

Getting a bad review never feels good. Public criticism is hard to take, especially when it immediately ripples through your organization.

But here's the truth: this feedback, while raw, unfiltered, and possibly uncomfortable, is not a disaster. It's a compass pointing you toward something that needs your attention.

The best thing to do as a patient experience leader? Don't react. Respond. Here's how it's done.

Bad reviews are opportunities for improvement. Responding with empathy can help you de-escalate the situation. Simultaneously, expressing empathy helps you earn the trust of new potential patients. A thoughtful reply shows that you genuinely care about your patient's experience.

As soon as you're made aware of a negative review:

• Acknowledge the feedback internally. Send a quick heads-up to your provider relations or patient experience team. Say something like, "Hey, we saw this negative review on Google. We're researching what happened and are working on a thoughtful response."

• Scan for signals. Try to determine what kind of issue you're dealing with. Is it clinical? Administrative? Emotional? Determining the answer to this question can help you offer a meaningful response.

Once you've got your bearings, it's time to put on your sleuthing hat.

A quick reply might seem necessary, especially if a provider is anxious to publish a response. But pausing first allows you to respond with context and a clear head.

You can't solve what you don't understand, so take the time to:

• Talk to the staff involved. Keep your tone curious, not critical: "We got some feedback from a patient on their appointment today. Can you walk me through what happened?" If merited, bring the named provider into the loop. Say something like, "This review mentioned your visit. We're crafting a response and want your perspective."

• Check appointment logs or notes. Clarify timelines or any miscommunications.

• Look for patterns. Is this an isolated event or a recurring issue?

Once you've done your homework, it's time to craft a thoughtful response.

Promptly engaging with negative reviews makes it clear your office is operated by human beings who care. This expression of care is critical to their patient experience.

A strong review response includes:

• Gratitude: Acknowledge and offer appreciation to the patient for taking time to share feedback.

• Empathy: Repeat the issue, apologize, and acknowledge that it's not the standard of care you aim to provide. Validate the patient's feelings.

• An invitation: Give the patient an opportunity to connect with someone on your team to provide more details about their experience.

As for some don'ts? Always avoid sharing any personally identifying information, don't use a defensive tone, and skip one-size-fits-all replies. Make it clear that you're invested in addressing the issue and that you care enough to look into it further.

Once your thoughtful reply is published, it's time to pivot back to your internal team.

A single review can send shockwaves through your team and can trigger a lot of emotions behind the scenes. Setting expectations and creating a clear communication loop helps everyone stay grounded.

To keep teams in sync:

• Check in with your team to make sure internal stakeholders are satisfied with the outcome of the reply.

• Flag and route larger issues. If a review uncovers a recurring pain point, escalate it to the right department.

• Close the loop. Let everyone know when a response has gone out and what, if any, next steps are being taken to address the issue.

Now that you have the most critical part handled, it's time to reflect.

With a response posted, teams aligned, and expectations managed, it's time to move to the next phase.

• Track trends across locations. Are multiple patients mentioning the same friction points?

• Adjust operations where needed. If multiple reviews mention check-in confusion or hold times, make updates and test improvements.

• Report progress. Tracking ratings and sentiment helps you identify positive and negative trends over time. It can also give you a stronger grasp on how your healthcare facility is performing.

Bonus: Publicly responding to reviews (both positive and negative) boosts your local search visibility. In turn, this visibility helps more patients find and trust your organization.

A single review may feel like a fire to put out, but reviews are one of your richest feedback channels. Effective review management improves your overall reputation, increases patient trust, and gives you the opportunity to provide a better patient experience.

With Yext Reviews, you can:

• Monitor and respond to all reviews, from Google to Healthgrades and beyond.

• Spot trends quickly with AI-powered tagging and analytics.

• Route reviews to the right teams, so no one drops the ball.

• Drive measurable improvements to the patient experience.

While bad reviews sting, they're real, human feedback. When handled well, they're a powerful way to show your patients that you're listening. Yext customers who respond to at least 75% of reviews have a 0.53% higher star rating, on average.

Here's your to-do list:

• Stay calm; pause and assess

• Gather context

• Respond with empathy

• Align your team

• Measure progress and use insights to improve

Ready to take action? Learn more about The Benefits of Healthcare Reviews and Reputation Management.