FAQs - The Guide to Guest Services™

How do we put our Guide to Guest Services™ together?

As you create the Guide for your hospital, the pre-production materials will assist you. You’ll receive vinyl samples; cover design ideas, and text assistance. We provide an electronic file that serves as a starting point for the text. When you send us the edited text file, we will lay it out for you. We will provide you with proofs of the text and cover for your approval prior to production. Design and format assistance are included in the cost of the Guide.

What is the turnaround time?

We will supply you with proofs of the cover and card set in about two weeks. With bilingual Guides, we recommend that you have us lay out the English version of the text before seeking translation. Once we have your approval of the proofs, we can usually ship in four to six weeks. You will receive a product that is ready to put into service the moment it arrives. It is a good idea to request the wall mounts to arrive before the Guides so they can be installed in advance.

Will the Guide improve our service excellence goals?

Patient satisfaction scores will indeed be boosted as the Guide is used in your hospital. Patients are no longer passive recipients but are informed consumers desirous of access to information and services. The Guide supports the current service excellence initiatives in healthcare nicely. Even staff members can refer to the Guide when they are in a patient room and are asked a question.

When used daily, how long will the Guides last?

The Guide has a three-year plain language guarantee because we manufacture it from the best materials available. All surfaces are industrial gauge virgin vinyl and the inks used are polymer based, which bond permanently to the vinyl. The cover hinges are a three-segment design that has withstood an open/close test of over 100,000 cycles without failing. Our "Plain Language Guarantee" ensures your satisfaction and the workmanship of the Guide.

Where will the Guides be placed?

In the patient rooms they should be displayed using a wall mount or placed on the bedside table.

Consider placing Guides in the following locations as well:

• Nursing stations
• Patient and visitor waiting areas
• Admitting representative stations
• Human resources for new employee orientation demonstration
• Administrative offices
• Information desks

Are there any issues with infection control?

The Guide To Guest Services is in service in over 1,800 hospitals in the U.S. and Canada. Housekeeping personnel have found them to be durable and easier to disinfect than most patient room fixtures such as telephones. The usual ammonia-based cleaning solutions have no ill effect on the Guide. It can be sprayed inside and out, and then wiped clean in moments.
Many facilities handle the cleaning of their Guides by keeping a supply on their housekeeping carts. When cleaning a room, the Guide is swapped out and taken back to the environmental services department for wiping down. That way a supply of clean Guides is always available on the carts.

Do I need to be concerned about theft of the Guides?

The loss/theft rate of the Guide is far less than one may expect: on average, 12% of Guides in service will be lost per year in an inner city hospital; 9% are lost in a community hospital. This is when the Wall Mounting Brackets are used. It is recommend that you purchase about one and one-half times the number of Guides as beds in service to constitute a three- to five-year supply. However, without the Wall Mounting Brackets, the loss rate can double. Even with a loss factor figured in, the Guide is far more economical than a disposable information piece.

How much do the Guides cost when compared to a typical disposable piece?

Since the Guide is not consumable, is easy to update, and has a useful life of over five years, the cost of providing guest information is significantly reduced when compared to a patient handbook or information packet. Hospitals using the Guide are saving many thousands of dollars in printing costs alone, not to mention the personnel time needed to compose and design a handbook every year or so. Many hospitals have described savings of over 75% of the cost of other printed material.

How are these Guides viewed by regulatory agencies like The Joint Commission?

The Joint Commission loves the Guide to Guest Services because it is property of the room and not in someone’s bag somewhere. Frequently, patients change rooms and the Guide is always there where it is needed. While the Joint Commission won’t endorse products, consistently high marks are given to facilities that use the Guide for their patient information.

Who maintains the computer file for changes?

We keep your text in our computer archives. We can also provide the finished file back to you if desired so that you may make changes. However, it is usually easier to simply mark your changes on the card(s) and fax them to us. We will submit a proof incorporating the changes before printing the revised card(s). The cost for reprints is minimal with us and we will will always provide you with a quote so you can compare. We support you in doing what works best for your organization.

Click here for a printable version of the Guide to Guest Services Frequently Asked Questions.