You're going to be surprised at how these colouring in books may change your patient waiting experience
This week’s Medical Republic print edition looks at how we sometimes torture our patients with bad waiting room feng shui.
One suggestion from our author to liven things up a bit is to give the adults more to do. And what what better way, suggests our expert, than add to your collection of children’s colouring books, with some of the burgeoning range of strange adult colouring books.
TMR’s reporters went on the hunt for some of the more interesting ones that might appeal to your patient demographic.
No 1. Waiting Room Politics
Nothing says your up with the times and ready to talk political turkey with your patient like a contemporary, if not slightly controversial, party political colouring book. Given he seems to have sewn up the Republican Primaries, you can be assured your patients will think you’re on the pulse of global politics with the The Trump Colouring Book – at least until the actual Presidential election anyway. Whether he’s crossing the Delaware , playing chess with Putin, checkers with the Chinese political elite, or meeting alien invaders, your patients will see Donald like they’ve never seen him before.
No 2. Contemporary Medical Issues
What better way to get your patients up to speed with contemporary medical issues than with this topical and highly targeted colouring book on the Victorian Medicinal Marijuana trials. Comes with free sample.
No 3. TOP RATING HBO SHOW and DRUG EDUCATION
Nothing says you’re tapping into the psyche of your patient demographic more than a top rating HBO cable series colouring book. In this case we recommend The Breaking Bad colouring book. Even though the series has technically ended, you can’t change a cable channel and not see this show, and there’s the added advantage of this educating your patients on a whole new class of drugs.
No 4. The teenage demographic part 1
When we say adults, we mean, anyone over the age of 12. Given that, you’ll have to cater for quite a few stages of teenage life. Here’s a classic –  The Goth Colouring Book. The advantage of this one is you only need two coloured pencils – black and dark purple. Other books in the series cover: gamers, jocks, dudes, skaters, nerds, mean girls, boys, and the highly anticipated Federal Government new release , The Safe Schools Program Colouring Book. Predicted to be a blockbuster.
No 5. The truth about unicorns
This is a hard hitting expose of Unicorns. And they’re not the prancy-dancy, awkward ,late for the ark ,” oh those poor strange but cute little mythical things” , that you think they are. Like some of the racier colouring books we recommend below, keep this one away from the kids. It will ruin their day.
No 6. Ageing punk rockers
Transcending most socio economic demographics and a group of individuals that is starting to age rapidly ,usually presenting with cardio problems, diabetes, hearing loss, memory and the ever present dizziness, are punk rockers. Sad really. But at least you can keep them feeling part of the crowd with this colouring book gem, The Punk Rock Fun Times Activity Book. They’ll revel in the old days for hours with this one, so you might be able to sneak a few urgent cases in front of them and they won’t notice a thing. Actually, they won’t notice anyway.
No 7. An old standard
Do we have to say anything about this one? An old standard and you’d be surprised at what some adults still don’t know.
No 8. Zen
If you can’t have some massively expensive jean wearing architect with heavy set glasses design the perfect Feng Shui waiting room for you, then go the next best thing and get the colouring book. There’s always someone who loves Zen in a patient population. The book is strangely agitating to try and colour in though. Not actually recommended for patients suffering from anxiety.
No 9. Hipsters
A bit of a specialised demographic, mainly for inner city  practices, but it’s certainly a rapidly growing clique. We’ve included a sample page here where you have to use colouring pencils or magic markers to make one of the two figures invisible to society. Hint: While hipsters and  hobos share a mutual appreciation for beards, old clothing and dirt, hipsters usually show an unwavering commitment to colour co-ordination.
No 10. Serial Killers
Too far? We figure that Crime Channel doesn’t get high ratings for nothing. Why not bring a little of that into the waiting room. Not recommended for psychiatry waiting rooms.
