Leaders in Pharmaceutical Business Intelligence (LPBI) Group

Patient Satisfaction with Hospital Experience

Curator: Larry H. Bernstein, MD, FCAP

 

 

Getting It Right: The Link Between the Patient Experience and Hospital Reputation

Katie Johnson, Ph.D., Director of Research and Analytics, National Research: 02/21/2014 –
See more at: http://www.nationalresearch.com/blog/33/#sthash.z8OlwguT.dpuf

 

When you get your daily vanilla latte, you know what to expect every single time—a great cup of Joe. And because of your positive morning (or afternoon) experience, you’ll keep going back. Does this same notion apply in healthcare? Absolutely.

But if you had a poor experience at your hospital, would you go back? Probably not.

It’s not rocket science that when you have a positive, favorable consumer experience with a product or service, you will keep going back for more—you may even adopt brand loyalty. However, as simple as this sounds, healthcare providers are not always “getting it right.”

According to a study by the National Research Corporation Market Insights Survey, the largest healthcare consumer survey in the U.S., eight percent of patients said their hospital experience was poor enough to not recommend the healthcare facility to family or friends. In addition, nine percent of patients rated their overall hospital care and services poorly.

When patients have a highly engaged, positive experience with their hospital, it’s a win-win situation. Hospital reputation is everything. And this rings true even more so today, since the patient experience is tied to hospital reimbursements. Below is a list of research-based evidence that explains why reputation matters:

• Patient experience is important. It’s important because treating patients well is the right thing to do. It’s important because a positive patient experience is related to better health outcomes (including lower readmission rates). It’s important because Value Based Purchasing has tied Medicare reimbursement to HCAHPS scores. It’s also important, we have found, because of its impact on hospital reputation.

 

• Hospital reputation is important. Why should hospitals care about their reputations? Hospital reputation plays a part in the selection process among would-be patients. Approximately nine in 10 people indicate that reputation is important when selecting a hospital. Further, once an individual selects and utilizes a hospital, he or she is more likely to utilize that same facility for future healthcare needs (pending a positive experience, of course).

 

• Hospital reputation is related to patient experience. Our research has shown that hospitals providing positive patient experiences have better reputations. In other words, hospitals that are rated highly by their discharged patients are also rated highly by the general public (whether they’ve had a direct hospital experience or not).

 

• We’ve found evidence to support an important chain of events. Patient experience drives reputation. Reputation drives utilization. Utilization drives future utilization.

 

• Some aspects of reputation are more closely related to patient experience than others. The top five correlates, in descending order, are:
  • most personalized care
  • best accommodations
  • highest patient safety
  • best nurses
  • best overall quality

 

• Today’s patient experience is related to tomorrow’s reputation. It takes time for reputations to form and change, and there is evidence of lag-time in the relationship between patient experience and hospital reputation. Correlations are strongest when patient experience is measured at the first time, and reputation is measured at the second time and six months later. This lag relationship indicates that the quality of the patient experience being administered in a hospital today is significantly related to the reputation of that hospital six months from now.

 

• “Bad” hospital reputations are even more important. Facilities delivering poor patient experiences are four times more likely to have poor reputations than facilities delivering good patient experiences. Bad news travels fast and wide. In order to improve a poor reputation brought on by a poor patient experience, facilities would be wise to turn their attention inward and focus on improving the experiences they provide their patients.

 

• We have a roadmap. The figure below is designed for healthcare leaders who would like to explore potential improvement strategies based on where their facilities are situated on the continuum of patient experience and reputation. While all strive to be in the top right category, scoring well on both patient experience and reputation, the reality is that the majority of facilities will find themselves located in one of the other three groups. Facilities in the top or bottom groups on the left side would do well to focus on the patient experience first and foremost. As we’ve learned, if the quality of patient experience is low, there is little that can be done effectively in terms of marketing and advertising. Facilities in the bottom right quadrant (high quality patient experience, but with reputations not reflective of that), should put resources into spreading the word and advertise the strength of their patient experience. It’s important that those in the community are made aware of the high-caliber care being delivered.

 

http://www.nationalresearch.com/uploads/Image/blog/BlogPic2-21-14.jpg

 

Research Brief: The Link Between the Patient Experience and Hospital Reputation

Hospitals and health systems across the United States are focusing increased effort on the delivery of superior patient experience, and with good reason. The provision of top-notch patient care translates to tangible benefits to both patients and their families, as well as to the healthcare facility itself.

In a research brief published by National Research Corporation in February 2014, The Link Between Patient Experience and Hospital Reputation, Dr. Katie Johnson presents findings showing how the patient experience is directly tied to a hospital or health system’s reputation. Research is derived from the National Research Market Insights Survey, the largest online healthcare consumer survey in the United States.