Escort service is getting hotter, but it still needs to be more "professional"
It has market potential, but lacks industry standards, and the escort service can only achieve a win-win situation by becoming professional
The escort of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University is helping patients to see patients. (□Reporter Li Yuan reports)
How many floors are there for medical treatment, which floor is for inspection, and where is the printed report...... Many people go to the hospital to see a doctor and encounter these problems. For patients who seek medical care alone, especially the elderly, the inconvenience may be even greater. Therefore, in cities with developed medical resources and strong demand for medical treatment, escort services came into being.
What are the forms of escort services? Who has the need for escort services? How can the industry develop healthily and standardly? The reporter conducted an interview in Qingdao.
Public welfare escort is convenient for three types of groups
At 9 o'clock on December 26, 2023, the elderly Li Shengqin went to the Shinan Branch of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University to pick up medicine. As soon as he saw the elderly walking into the outpatient hall, Hu Liming, a staff member of the hospital's volunteer escort service team, took the initiative to greet him.
"Uncle, what medicine do you need today?" Hu Liming asked enthusiastically while supporting the old man. After helping the old man register, Hu Liming helped the old man to the gastroenterology department on the fourth floor of the outpatient building, and while waiting for the call, she first helped the old man find a seat, and then poured a cup of hot water for the old man.
Follow-up treatment, payment, and medicine, Hu Liming also accompanied the old man until he was sent out of the outpatient hall before returning to his post, waiting to serve the next patient in need. "I met this girl again today, and every time she took me to see a doctor and take medicine, she was very patient. The old man Li Shengqin sighed.
"Our volunteer escort service is mainly for the elderly, pregnant women, people with disabilities and other groups who seek medical treatment alone. Shan Xinzhi, director of the Service Management Department of the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, introduced that in May last year, the hospital took the lead in launching public welfare escort services for medical institutions in Qingdao, and recruited 20 full-time escorts.
Hu Liming said that when they provide services, they will first show their identities, and then hand the patients a contact card for volunteer escort services, so that patients can contact them in time when they need help. The reporter saw that the contact card is marked with information such as service content, service object, contact number and service station address, which can make the majority of patients clearly understand the scope and content of the escort service.
In order to further improve the satisfaction of the masses in seeing a doctor, in November last year, the Qingdao Municipal Health Commission announced the first batch of public medical institutions to make an appointment for escort service telephones, and the city's 52 public medical institutions can provide appointments, registration, payment, examination, medicine and other whole-process medical services and guidance for pregnant women, disabled people, and the elderly over 65 years old. Qingdao Central Hospital is also one of them. The hospital actively expands the field of volunteer service in the hospital, and the on-the-job staff of the hospital provides public welfare escort services. Up to now, the volunteer team of Qingdao Central Hospital has provided more than 100 heart-warming services.
Paid escort services are in the ascendant
"There are a lot of patients in the hospital, and when it comes to the peak of diagnosis and treatment, the medical staff are too busy with their own work, and it is difficult to find time to volunteer to accompany them. Shan Xinzhi told reporters that even if a full-time escort has been recruited, it is currently impossible to do one-on-one long-term escort.
For patients who really need one-on-one escort, the market-oriented paid escort service provided by third-party institutions has become an effective supplement. Recently, Qingdao citizen Jiang Chencong's child was sick, and her family was out of town, so she was really busy with 2 children, so she made an appointment with a blue whale to accompany her.
"The child's condition cannot be delayed, the last time I came to Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital to see a doctor was three years ago, and now I am not familiar with the hospital's departments and procedures. Jiang Chencong said that she contacted the accompanying doctor Li Chunji a day in advance and determined the time, and took the child to see the doctor in less than two hours.
"It's better to have one more person by your side than to be alone, and I think the other party's charge is quite reasonable, 200 yuan for half a day, I can also accept it. Jiang Chencong said that the escort was very familiar with the hospital departments and processes, and helped her make an appointment with an expert in advance, and the overall service was efficient and considerate.
"I started in this new industry two years ago, and I've been constantly exploring and Xi. Now, our team has its own service brand, and the number of members has expanded to 20 people, some full-time, some part-time, and the way of working is very flexible. Li Chunji said that at present, the customer base is stable and steadily increasing, and an escort can receive 50 or 60 orders per month.
Qingdao Tim Fukang Medical Management Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Tim Fukang") is also the first batch of "crab eaters". "When we started the one-stop medical assistance business, we found that some community residents had a need for escort treatment, so we tried to develop the escort business. From training teams to standardizing management and building online platforms, the scale is getting bigger and bigger. Gao Yikun, CEO of the company, said that the escort business has been carried out for more than three years, and there have been no disputes or complaints.
What is the difference between public service and paid service? From the point of view of the service content, the two are indeed similar, such as accompanying to register, see a doctor, do examinations, run errands and pay fees, take medicine and get reports, and so on. In Gao Yikun's view, in addition to the fee, the biggest difference is the scope and method of service.
"Due to personnel limitations, the hospital's public welfare services cannot take care of everyone, let alone one-on-one services. The market provides paid services, which can meet the needs of various groups, and citizens can make appointments by phone or online, in a very flexible way. Gao Yikun said that the paid escort accompanied the whole process one-on-one, and the service time was longer.
The development of the industry still needs to be standardized
With the continuous expansion of the scale of diagnosis and treatment, the division of hospitals is more refined, and the level of intelligent medical services is gradually improved, the medical experience of most patients has been greatly improved. However, for the elderly who are lonely, the disabled, and patients seeking medical treatment from other places, because they are not familiar with the hospital departments and equipment systems, they will still "not be able to find the north" in the hospital, and the demand for escort services is growing.
The reporter learned from the interview that in Qingdao, there are dozens of enterprises or platforms engaged in escort services, with more than hundreds of full-time escorts and even more part-time escorts. In addition, some insurance companies, housekeeping companies, and even food delivery platforms have also launched escort services. The pricing and charging are uneven, and the quality of the escort is uneven, which is the status quo of the industry.
"Before we take up our posts, we have to receive professional training in standard service procedures, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, wheelchair use, etc., and after we take up our posts, we will also be taught by senior medical guides in the hospital, so that we can be familiar with the distribution of hospital departments and treatment processes in the shortest possible time, and understand the information of experts in the hospital. Hu Liming said that he hopes that through professional escort services, patients can save time for medical treatment and provide health consultation within their capabilities.
This is also Li Chunji's original intention of service. "In the past few years, I have also accumulated some experience, and I am often invited to give training to novice escorts, and the courseware is prepared by me based on experience, and the level is definitely limited. Li Chunji expects that the service process such as pre-job training, standard formulation, and customer feedback will be more standardized and professional.
If you want to improve the service quality of the entire industry, it is difficult to rely on the strength of a single escort or a company. "This requires the establishment of a more complete and professional training system. If there are relevant industry associations and experts to guide and regulatory departments to manage the chaos in the industry, I believe that the development prospects of escorts will be better and better. Gao Yikun thinks.
At present, there is a lack of unified industry standards and norms for the emerging profession of escort doctor, and there is no relevant professional certification system and industry supervision. Especially in the form of online appointments, there is no need to sign a contract or show a practice certificate and other information, and it is easy to cause disputes once there is a problem.
In this regard, industry experts said that if the escort industry with market potential wants to develop healthily and sustainably, it should move towards specialization and standardization, which requires relevant departments to follow up and formulate a unified industry system in a timely manner, establish a sound management system, increase the reserve and training of professional talents, and let practitioners master the knowledge of medical psychology and be familiar with the outpatient characteristics and medical treatment processes of various hospitals.
(Reporter Li Yuan)