It’s been a long pandemic. And GP practices are nowhere near out of it yet. Demands (and often tempers) are high, yet feelings of being valued across the sector are pretty low. All parts of the NHS system have been thanked in generic terms for so long that lines like ‘thank you for your efforts’, ‘thank you for your work’, ‘thank you for all you do’ often don’t cut the mustard anymore. Also, budgets don’t have much left in them. So how do practice managers, as leaders, keep on motivating people? I don’t have any magic answers to give, but one thing I do know, based on years of HR experience, is that a simple compliment can pack a bigger punch than you might think.

What do I mean by a compliment? Well, I don’t mean ‘your hair looks nice’! Neither do I mean short bland statements like ‘you’re all so good’. I mean statements of defined, specific recognition for an individual or small group. Really, I’m talking about what’s usually termed ‘positive feedback in the workplace’, but that sounds a bit too much like management-speak, so I’ll stick with compliment for now.

Giving appropriate compliments like this is a skill in its own right, because it involves seeing something – for which you might not even be the intended audience – and ascribing value to it. For example:

• “I saw you handle that call with patient X just now. The way you helped and explained the situation to her was great. You sounded so calm and caring.”
• “Thank you for offering to cover tomorrow’s shift. Changing your day off shows a lot of generosity, and I really appreciate it.”
• “I’m pleased at how up to date and detailed these records are, especially given how busy we’ve been. It must have taken effort and concentration to get them done on time.”

Having your skill, aptitude or achievements explicitly recognised in the workplace like this usually gives us a boost. It can build feelings of pride and recognition, strengthen relationships, and promote good working practices. As long as the compliment is delivered in a sincere, meaningful way, it’s hard to see many downsides really.

You might read this and think, ‘well, I do that all the time’ – and, if so, well done! But if you’re someone who thinks there’s more you could be doing to develop your skills in this area and the practice’s culture, then read on. Here are some ideas to take that next step.

1. Challenge yourself! Start today. Look around you at the practice, and at your team. What is there that pleases you? Impresses you? Moves you? Walk up to someone and say it out loud. Try to do the same again tomorrow. Can you increase your numbers? Can you get a ten-day streak?!
2. Why not make it a practice ‘thing’? Create a compliments noticeboard and encourage people to write quick notes about the things patients say, as well as including positive feedback both from managers and colleagues about the things that are going well, however small and ordinary they might seem.
3. Make it more formal? I once created a ‘Wow Awards’ scheme for an employer. Any manager or team member could nominate a colleague for doing something that wowed them, whether it involved supporting one another, helping out, having a brilliant idea, or making a great job of a tricky task. Once nominated, the colleague received a certificate with the details of what they’d done and who’d nominated them. I heard several people call this cheesy, but they tended to change their minds when they received an award unexpectedly themselves. Happy tears were reported on numerous occasions!

Fiona W. shared her own practice’s experiences on the Practice Index forum recently, as follows:

“We use a platform called Thank and Praise where patients can thank staff individually and staff can thank each other privately via WhatsApp or via the App. There is also a public thanking wall where messages are displayed. We copy these and share them with our teams. The messages the practice and staff receive are really uplifting.”

So, there we have it – ways to compliment people more. It’s not going to change the world, end Covid, create more funding, or stop patients from getting angry. But it might raise a few smiles in the practice and let your team members know that, despite everything, they’re seen and they’re valued.

Author: Susi O’Brien, HR Advisor – Practice Index Advice Line