Recent study identifies opportunity to improve patient satisfaction

A recent study reported that a large percentage of physicians recognize the importance of assessing their patients’ care expectations. However, the study also found that only a small percentage of physicians reported that they routinely ask and address care expectations with their own patients. 

Efforts to deal with these concerns more openly could have a positive effect not only on patient satisfaction scores, but on patient outcomes as well. This research is outlined in the article “The ‘blind spot’ of patient satisfaction: Few providers report asking what patients expect from care.” To access the full article, follow this link: http://www.advisory.com/Daily-Briefing/2011/10/27/Patient-satisfaction-blind-spot.

Helping patients to understand what they realistically can anticipate in the hospital setting (that they may have a semiprivate room instead of a private room, for example) and realistically can expect from their discharge plans (they may be going home on crutches instead of walking unassisted right away, for instance) can help to avoid overall disappointment.

Measured by the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey and publicly reported on websites such as http://www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov, recent patient satisfaction data indicate an opportunity for improvement continues to exist in physician-focused HCAHPS measures at both the UPMC Presbyterian and UPMC Shadyside campuses.