What Is Patient Experience?

Patient experience is a total of all the interactions that patients have with the healthcare system, which includes interactions with doctors, nurses, staff members, physician facilities, etc.

Other healthcare components, such as care delivery, easy access to information, timely appointments, and timely follow-up, are also integral to an excellent patient experience.

Patient Experience is different from Patient Satisfaction

Patient satisfaction and patient experience are not the same. To measure patient experience, one must find out from patients whether something that should happen in a healthcare setting (such as clear communication with a provider) actually happened or how often it happened.

Satisfaction, on the other hand, is about whether a patient who had previous expectations about a health encounter were met. Two people who receive the same care, but have different expectations for how that care is supposed to be delivered, can give different satisfaction ratings because of their different expectations.

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Four Factors of the Patient Experience?

The Beryl Institute gives four key elements to the ultimate patient experience interactions, culture, perceptions, and continuum of care.

Interactions

This includes each coordinated touchpoint of people, processes, policies, communications, actions, and environment. Every way in which a practice contacts or influences a patient contributes to their healthcare journey.

Culture

The vision, values, people (at multiple levels), and community can all have a profound impact on the patient care experience.

Perceptions 

This includes everything recognized understood and remembered by patients and support people. Perceptions vary based on individual experiences such as beliefs, values, and cultural background.

Continuum of care

The appointment is much more than the actual visit. It is every interaction with a practice or provider before, during, and after delivery of care.

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How do you deliver a world-class patient experience?

Make Access and Scheduling Easy

Easy access is more important in healthcare than in any other industry, especially in cases of emergencies that can strike at any time. Patients build a perception of a healthcare facility right from the first interaction to booking an appointment.

Therefore, factors like 24x7 availability, flexible appointments, quick access to medical care, etc., prove to be some critical elements of excellent patient care.

Be patient-centric

Patients want quality care, and they want to be seen and heard. Listen to the "voice" of our patients and families, seek their input, include them in every decision and continuously collaborate.

Create a Friendly Environment

The friendliness of the office staff can have one of the greatest effects on a positive patient experience. By starting the visit with a pleasant and welcoming environment, healthcare providers can immediately improve their chances of positive patient reviews and online ratings.

The office staff is a reflection of the provider and the practice, which is why it is essential that the team is supported, equipped, and well-trained.

Make it Personal

Knowing specific details about your patients makes them feel special. Be sure to utilize the per-patient notes and details functionality that your EHR system provides.

Whether it is a staff member remembering a birthday, a special occasion, or a hobby, personal details enhance the patient experience.

Have an accountability-focused structure

Patient experience is not just a "nice thing to do." It's tied to outcomes, quality and safety. Everyone plays a role in owning the patient and customer experience at all levels.

Whether you are working in a clinical, nonclinical or corporate setting, everything you do impacts the delivery of a superior patient and customer experience.

Make use of the latest technology

Using cloud technology for patient and medical records enables quick & efficient clinical data analysis, and improves patient care and communication between patients and healthcare providers, this increases ease of treatment and helps with digital checks and balances that can alert physicians of, potential risks, allergies, etc. thereby ensuring safe medication dispensing and patient care.

Follow-up

Exceptional patient care involves ongoing communication. Failing to follow up with patients can lead to significant legal dangers for medical practices and healthcare organizations. Reach out to patients after their visit to keep open lines of communication.

This will help improve the quality of care, increase patient satisfaction, build long-term relationships, assist service recovery, and keep patients coming back.

Never ghost your patient

Technology has made it easier for practices to stay in touch with their patients' tools such as email, SMS, and social media, are great ways to keep in touch with patients.

You can even provide more value by having a practice newsletter that keeps patients up to date with practice changes and healthful tips.

Always ask for Patient Feedback

Always allow patients to provide real-time feedback, it not only makes them feel valued but also provides the practice with an enormous amount of valuable data. Patient feedback surveys can help a practice compare and analyze patient experiences which can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of improvement initiatives.

Most importantly, they can be used to help set higher standards for quality, patient satisfaction, and loyalty within a practice, while supporting a culture of patient-centred care.

The key to any positive, hassle-free experience is consistency. It's your job to make sure the experience for your patients and their family members is always exceptional.

Your dedication, enthusiasm and ability to consistently role model and motivate others on delivering an exceptional experience, play an important role in making every moment matter.

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