Why Is Patient Feedback Crucial?

Patients are people like us who happen to be in clinical relationships with healthcare professionals, seeking their help. How patients experience healthcare depends on several factors.

• What do healthcare professionals and staff do and say?
• What patients themselves say and do?
• How is the physical environment?
• What are the rules and customs that characterize that healthcare setting?

 

According to the Picker Institute, patients want the following:

• Fast access to reliable health advice
• Effective treatment delivered by trusted professionals
• Participation in decisions and respect for preferences
• Clear, comprehensible information and support for self-care
• Attention to physical and environmental needs
• Emotional support, empathy and respect
• Involvement of, and support for family/caregivers
• Continuity of care and smooth transitions.

 

There are 8 principles of Patient Care:

• 1. Access
• 2. Dignity and respect
• 3. Safe and effective care
• 4. Communication and information
• 5. Participation
• 6. Privacy
• 7. Improving health
• 8. Accountability (gathering feedback)

 

The feedback element feeds back to the overall patient care strategy for any practice.

 

The CAHPS Clinician & Group Survey (CG-CAHPS) asks patients to report on and rate their recent experiences with clinicians and their staff.

 

The CG-CAHPS Survey results can be used to:

• Improve care provided by individual providers, sites of care, medical groups, or provider networks.
• Equip consumers with information they can use to choose physicians and other health care providers, physician practices, or medical groups.
• Engage patients in the decision making process to ensure they know that they have a say in their healthcare.
• Improve patient experiences using on feedback from actual patients to make informed changes within an organization.

 

Patients want to be in clean surroundings, be comfortable and free from pain, treated with dignity, respect and honesty. They want to be involved in the decision making about their healthcare and to be treated with compassion and skill. Patients today value choice so medical practices have to listen to them to adapt to remain their patient’s favor.

 

Check out Digital Marketing Sapien’s patient survey app based on CG-CAHPS standard at http://digitalmarketingsapiens.com/healthcare/patient-survey/. Feel free to contact us at 210-582-5842 if you need any further information.