1. Don’t react emotionally. It’s a proven method not to react on a complaint right away. Be prepared to listen when it’s a non-written complaint. Make notes of everything and promise to call back within x hours or days.
2. Always fulfill your promises and always respect deadlines.
3. Never only react in writing. It is proof of elementary courtesy and customer friendliness to at least give the customer a short phone call to elucidate your reply.
4. Be grateful for the fact that the customer even bothers informing you about his dissatisfaction. Don’t forget that this means the customer values the cooperation enough to give you another shot. Look at complaints as being chances!
5. Learn from your mistakes. Create an overview of the most common complaints on a regular basis and think about a possible cause. This can lead to the “quick wins” to perform better in the future.

In Europe, more and more medical labs pursue ISO 15189 certification. This standard is based on ISO 17025 (thus also on ISO 9001) but with more specific demands and guidelines specific to medical labs. In 2007, an updated/revised version was published for a standard dating from 2003. Despite the fact that it is not an obligation in Europe yet, the European medical world invests more and more to get certified. In the United States where FDA rules the medical world, it is a requirement. Therefore, companies that want to be active on both continents will be facing a double certification for a while.