"I know it isn't health care related, but back in college, when I was a waitress, I had an upset customer at the restaurant who didn't have his meat prepared the way he wanted. I apologized, but he was very upset to the point of yelling. I tried to stay calm. He did stop eventually- I apologized again and told him I would comp his meal and talk to the chef. I also asked if he would like to order something different. He chose another option and was quiet after that."

"I used to work in a call center, so I often had customers upset because they had to wait to talk to a "live person." One customer went on and on about how her time was valuable and how she couldn't believe it took her this long to get a real person on the end of the line. I let her vent and then apologized. I told her I was here now and asked how I could help her. I listened very carefully to what she needed, and instead of passing her to another individual when she asked me a question I didn't know, I put her on hold while I found out the answer instead of transferring her. She was grateful for my help and had calmed down by the end of the call."