Numerous studies have demonstrated a strong correlation between a better patient experience and better overall health outcomes for patients. The patient experience measures the entire patient-provider relationship, including trust and awareness, communication, tolerance, aliveness. This relationship is central to improved patient safety and better patient health. It has been hypothesized that the increased cost of hospital malpractice insurance helps explain the relatively large variance in hospital malpractice rates across states.
Patients’ overall health and their care outcomes are closely associated with costs and clinical quality of care. Patients who receive high levels of patient care and experiences positive interpersonal communication and physical support are more likely to obtain optimal health and hospital outcomes than patients who receive less care and have less encouragement and support from staff. More likely, a better patient experience goals in more favorable outcomes. Better patient experience promotes care improvement because better caregivers can identify and respond to patients’ needs quickly and efficiently. Likewise, a better patient experience encourages providers to provide higher quality care by implementing strategies to prevent common errors and mistakes. In essence, a better patient experience can translate into better hospital outcomes and better patient health.
Several hospitals have established well-developed patient experience programs to improve patient satisfaction and quality of care. The most successful patient experience programs take the form of well-implemented guidelines and practices. For example, many hospitals have instituted specific guidelines for patients with acute injuries or at high risk for complications. Other hospitals have specific patient encounter programs for common problems and even specific guidelines for psychiatric disorders.
Implementing patient experience programs within an overall improved care strategy improves outcomes. The focus on improving patient satisfaction allows hospitals to evaluate their clinical care more thoroughly. This will enable hospitals to identify gaps in treatment and implement solutions to improve patient satisfaction. A better patient experience program can also be implemented as part of a larger comprehensive strategy that focuses on organizational improvements. Therefore, a hospital’s overall quality improvement effort involves more than just improving treatment outcomes; it also includes efforts to identify gaps in patient care and develop systems to close them.
One way to address gaps in inpatient care is to consider using a patient experience improvement program or other patient care improvement initiative. The importance of having a well-implemented patient care improvement initiative cannot be underestimated. If hospitals do not consider using these initiatives, they may find that patient satisfaction deteriorates over time. By developing and implementing patient care improvement initiatives, hospitals can address a critical health problem in its early stages and thus reduce unnecessary wait time for patients.
Waiting room overcrowding is a common complaint across many medical specialties. It is particularly significant in emergency departments, which often experience very high levels of patient traffic due to emergency room patients requiring immediate attention and surgery patients with complex hospital settings. Although emergency departments have several different methods for dealing with these situations, they are rarely successful in exhausting the waiting room space. Waiting rooms can quickly fill up with crowded chairs and tables. Emergency departments should consider using carts or Waiting Room Assistants to maintain a consistent and orderly waiting room environment to avoid this problem.
Another issue that is particularly notable in smaller healthcare practices is miscommunication between patients and healthcare professionals. Including long wait times, inaccurate or outdated information provided by staff, and inaccurate patient records. Such issues can quickly ruin a healthcare practice’s credibility with patients and further delay the recovery of their patients. By using telemedicine and web-based patient appointment scheduling services, healthcare professionals can significantly increase patient satisfaction and reduce unnecessary patient confusion.
Improving a healthcare practice’s patient-related experience is not always as easy as it seems. When physical health and mental health are involved, things can become very complicated. No one wants to walk into a doctor’s office, be put on hold for over thirty minutes, and then feel like the staff doesn’t know what they’re doing. Telemedicine solutions make it possible for medical facilities to improve their patient-related experience, allowing them to serve their patients better and serve their needs with greater precision.