Patient experience measurements re widely used as a means of assessing the quality of care from the perspective of users. Despite the recent proliferation of these measures, they are all too often poorly understood and fail to lead to service improvements. The role that measuring and understanding experiences play in ensuring that care services are person-centered is very important, including the barriers to effective use of experience information and how these can be overcome.

This interesting burning topic was presented to us by our guests from the Picker Institute and Global Services – Planetree. These are Chris Graham and Karin Jay.

Karin Jay is Senior Vice President at Global Services-Planetree where she is working to expand the network of Planetree Affiliates internationally, and provide consultation to key stakeholders on the implementation of Planetree’s relationship-centered model of care and international certification criteria. Karin has been a contributing author on several publications focused on accreditation, patient-centered care, and patients’ rights. Karin currently serves on ISQua’s Person-Centered Care Community of Practice, The Joint Commission’s Patient and Family Advisory Council, and is an active volunteer with several non-profit organizations.

Chris Graham is the CEO of Picker, a leading international charity that exists to promote and improve person-centered care. A researcher by background, Chris has particular expertise in measuring, understanding, and using people’s experiences of healthcare and has worked with partners around the world to develop approaches to patient feedback. This has included extensive work on the development of the NHS Staff and Patient Survey Programs, two of the largest programs of their kind anywhere in the world. As well as his work at Picker, Chris is a National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) faculty member, an associate member of the University of Oxford’s Health Services Research Unit, and is part of the Quality, Safety, and Outcomes of Health and Social Care Policy Research Unit.

The vision of Picker Institute is the highest quality health and social care for all, always. To influence, inspire and empower.

Why do we measure people`s experiences? Because to measure is to know and if you cannot measure it, you cannot improve it; to see through the patient’s eyes and to put patients at the heart of healthcare.

But at different levels of health systems there are different purposes of measuring patient experience. At the very top level – a national level, patient experience is basically performance assessment, resource allocation, surveillance, policy evaluation and improvement. For providers, there is a valuable role for performance tracking and management, benchmarking, service evaluation and of course improvement. Practitioners can use the data for service and QI, education and training, reward and recognition and opportunities for improvement. Patients and the public – there is a choice, transparency, and service improvements.

Surveys on patient satisfaction over 15 years show a very small shift of 2% improvement. This is a very small, almost insignificant improvement. So, what stands in the way of improvement? If we all agree, it is very important that we measure it. The problem is that people often do not react to research data and do not react to the feedback received. Research shows that clinicians often ignore survey evidence. Commonly cited barriers include: defensive reactions to bad news, concern that results will be very negative, findings not sufficiently specific, mistrust of the findings/methods, limited expertise, a narrow focus on measurement, not improvement and lack of time.

Normative & structural legitimacy together with organizational readiness to change are factors that need to be present in an organization in order for patient feedback to be used for an attempt of improvement. These are things that must be deeply rooted in culture and people for everything to work. It takes number of characteristics which are present in organizations where improvement happens. From leadership at the level of CEO and board of directors to supportive technology that engages patients and families directly in the process of care by facilitating information access. Every link in the chain is equally important on the way to the goal. Measurement is necessary when processes or outcomes need to be quantified, when things need to be compared and when performance needs to be tracked. Managing patient experience well requires that we measure those things that we can and monitor and account for those things that we can’t.

Listening to and acting on patient feedback is an important part of person-centered care. Measurement is necessary but not sufficient for improvement because we have seen that a lot of energy comes to the measurement itself with which nothing is done later. We will have no improvement due to the measurement. It is important to be aware of potential barriers to use of data at various levels. So best practice for the organization is to take a strategic approach to understanding & improving experiences as well as incorporate qualitative feedback as well as measures.

Restoring consumer confidence by partnering with patients and families after the struggle we`ve all been through with a pandemic COVID-19. There is so many articles that are saying so many patients are resisting to seek healthcare during the pandemic. Patients are worried and wonder what will happen to them if they seek medical help and see their doctor or go to the hospital. As a result of this pandemic situation, a lot has changed and people’s distrust of the health care system has grown. We’re not even aware of that much until it hits us personally. From February to May 2020, 48% of people postponed any type of medical care because of the coronavirus outbreak. It is frightening that 11% of them stated that their condition had worsened in the meantime because of not receiving proper medical treatment. People all over the world are getting very mixed messages like “Stay home, stay safe” alluding to the fact that all needs outside the household are reduced to a minimum. While on the other hand they also say “Do not delay medical care”. We need to work on building trust and confidence back with our patients. Edelman Trust Barometer research reveals 16 specific attributes that build trust, but the first and most important one is engagement.

The physical, emotional and practical dimension of consumer confidence is very important. These are questions and statements like “Am I safe?”, “Is telemedicine effective?” or having feelings of uncertainty.

Why do we want to build trust and confidence by partnering with patients & families? First and foremost, to humanize the strategy.  To personalize our messaging to our patients and consumers. We want to do this as a reality check for assumptions and internal dialogues.

Who should we do it with? Reach out to those who have received care recently, to those who are delaying care. Partner with community-based organizations & community health workers. How will we do this? Of course, this is coming down to measurements again. We`re going to use existing structures and processes within our organizations. Besides that, we will facilitate virtual meetings and focus groups, engage consumers as thought partners, not just as “reactors”. Virtual partnerships would be possible with using free video/conference calling technology – Skype, Zoom, WhatsApp etc. With brief surveys in waiting rooms, Facebook polls and if patients don’t have video technology, consider small group conference calls or short one-on-one calls for input.

Engage patient/family partners on quality and safety teams, on communication teams, on ethics teams and on community outreach teams. When should we do this? NOW! This is not about a moment in time. It is an ongoing commitment.

Watch this webinar in full at the link and find out more information on the topic.

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With decades of experience in healthcare, Irving Stackpole is the President of Stackpole & Associates, Inc., a strategy, marketing and research firm founded in 1991. Stackpole & Associates has conducted strategic research and marketing projects in the United States and internationally, and has worked for providers, governments and agencies on 4 continents, and many countries. Irving is a mentor for the European Institute for Innovation in Health, an EU program to stimulate healthcare entrepreneurship. He edited Medical Tourism Marketing, the 1st book on the subject and is the co-author of The Marketing Handbook in Health Tourism.

Elizabeth Ziemba is a pioneer in health travel and a President & Founder of Medical Tourism Training. She delivers consulting, training, and assessment services for clients in the wellness, health, medical and hospitality sectors with innovative, practical, evidence-based solutions for business and economic growth. Ms. Ziemba helps clients build strong organizations at the cross-roads of health & hospitality to compete locally and globally.

Patient innovation and patient experience is in the best opportunity to flourish in Europe. The future markets for healthcare service are for the most part in our hands. The future of healthcare is digital, agnostic to distance, source location and delivery location. Certainly, some aspects of healthcare will need to be personal, person to person, but there will be a significant array of features that will be added to healthcare and medical services that will be on the outside ages of the center which is of course, the consumer/ the patient. “Digital ecosystem” is consisted of data in the center of it all, big data, health IT, personal engagement tools and telemedicine. At the time of the world pandemic, telehealth developed at a high speed, that is, it became much more used. The definition would be information exchange from one site to another via electronic communications. In Europe there are some countries who established the infrastructure for performing telemedicine. There is a need to bring quite a bit of technology there in order to make the service both secure efficient and interoperable. A lot of platforms were launched after COVID-19 outbreak in March 2020 that facilitate the use of telemedicine. This is a very significant development in the digital infrastructure of the digital ecosystem around healthcare which of course will have the direct influence on patient experience. The questions that are asked with so many tele consultation events happening today, many of them also being recorded, are they safe, secure, and what happens to them after that? If the system records a teleconsultation it can appear afterwards in the electronic health record.

The future really is in our hands. It is the interface between the consumer and her provider. 90% of consumers accept telehealth as a very good option for them right now. Before the COVID-19 outbreak, 2/3 of the population were completely ready for the acceptance of wearables. 3% of consumers were prepared and wanted the access from their providers through their mobile devices. In accordance with everything that the digital ecosystem brings us and the 21st century in which we live, traditional hospitals as we have known them so far will not be able to exist for a long time in a digital society.

What do patients expect now in the near future? The answer depends on services, markets and locations. Some places, that used to be very popular venues, due to their poor responses to the pandemic, will result in people being discouraged from travelling to those locations. And conversely, some locations responded incredibly well and they will become future magnets for health travelers. There are 7 factors that we are taking into consideration. Influencing factors that we know now are virtual care, speed of learning, standards, workforce, preparedness, inequality and sustainability.

The Malaysian response to COVID-19 is very interesting, it is based on building preparedness for surge capacity, testing efficiency and containment. They are a population of over 32 million and the number of deaths connected to COVID-19 until June 2020 was 121. Therefore, patients expect us to learn faster and deliver faster, to adapt to situations really quickly.

International council for nurses, back in May 2020, estimated that about 90 000 healthcare workers globally had been infected by COVID-19 and that as of May, at least 600 healthcare workers have died from the disease. In response to this, around the world, we see a great deal of community support in form of donations, calling the heroes, posting on social media, websites, programs being created, all with the aim to thank them for what they are doing. Creating a safe & healthy environment for healthcare workers means creating a safe & healthy environment for clients/patients. There are 4 factors that are more important than being called a hero; access to proper personal protective equipment (PPE) without interruption, flexible work environment, care for physical & mental health and assuring physical safety.

Regarding inequality, several questions arise; is healthcare available, accessible and affordable to everyone in the area that is being served or within your country. The big question that stays unanswered at this point is what impact does the preparedness or lack of preparedness, good or poor communication have on the clients/patients’ trust and confidence in your destination or in your healthcare organization and what impact does it have on your brand? Those are the things to really think about.

All these factors will influence where patients choose to go. Recently taken consumers survey showed that the most important change the business can make is to follow rigorous cleaning guidelines.

As we strive around the world to adapt to this new situation, as we look for new and even better ways, take the time to follow our future webinars and other events. In the meantime, stay healthy and responsible.

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August 19, 2020 – The 3rd EPIC webinar of the European Patient Experience and Innovation Congress features acclaimed travel guru, Doug Lansky.

The European Patient experience and Innovation Congress, in its adaptation around the world pandemic, is organizing the third EPIC Webinar, “The Patient Journey & Innovation”.

Thanks to the organizers, Bagatin Clinic with collaborative international presenter Cleveland Clinic, co-organizers Global Clinic Rating and Stackpole & Associates Inc., partner Elda Pharm, technological partner CISCO and accreditation partner Temos, we can enjoy quality webinars every month.

We often look to other industries for clues to improve our own practices.

This is why the EPIC committee invited tourism expert Doug Lansky to provide some insight into customer service and how it can positively affect the patient experience. There’s perhaps no better source than the world’s top hotels, restaurants, and tours when it comes to highlighting great customer service.

Doug will not only explain how aspects of these services can be directly adopted by the healthcare industry but that it can actually be done on a minimal budget and positively impact patients’ health by reducing stress at key points along the patient journey.

Doug Lansky is a tourism development thought leader who advises destinations and tourism companies and hotel associations around the world – from Singapore to Aruba, Google Travel to Amadeus – on strategy, management, and visitor experience. He spotted a clear customer-service connection between tourism and healthcare and has found a way to transfer best-practice examples from hospitality to hospitals.

Doug has given acclaimed lectures at nearly 100 universities, spoken to a sold-out audience at National Geographic Headquarters, for the United Nations World’s Tourism Organization, as an after-dinner speaker at corporate events and at both public and industry travel/tourism conferences, at TEDx Stockholm and set the attendance record for keynote lectures at the 2012 and 2013 ITB Berlin conferences.

The webinar will be presented by one of the members of the EPIC committee, Irving Stackpole, the President of Stackpole & Associates, Inc., a marketing, research, training, and organizational development firm.

Founded in 1991, Stackpole & Associates applies scientific marketing principles to develop practical solutions to clients’ challenges. Using the most rigorous psychological and behavioral science research, Stackpole & Associates develops methods and designs that produce unimpeachable data yielding reliable, actionable recommendations.

Stackpole & Associates works collaboratively with clients to create innovative and practical solutions to the challenges facing organizations in rapidly changing markets, including health travel.

Join us on August 27th for this new EPIC webinar and learn about the Patient Journey and Innovation.

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