ABSTRACT
Being assertive is about expressing people feelings clearly and openly and behaving in keeping with these feelings in an honest way. One of the characteristics of someone who is healthily assertive is that they are not afraid to give their opinion. Nobody should be afraid to give their opinion on a subject they know something about. Negotiating is an integral part of assertive behaviour that is used to reach an agreement that is mutually acceptable to both sides. Receptionists need to learn to be more assertive with patients so that they are not bullied into adding patients on as ‘emergencies’ for trivial complaints. Staff need to appear confident and assertive but not aggressive and they should be aware of the messages given out by their body language from the very first moment of the patient acting in an aggressive way.
