START PAYING ATTENTION TO PATIENT SATISFACTION BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE.

The bottom line: Hospitals can’t afford to ignore patient satisfaction and national satisfaction survey outcomes. Whether its Press Ganey, HCAPHS or one of the other national survey methods, some 8400 patients are taking a satisfaction survey EACH DAY.

As the percentage of reimbursement tied to satisfaction measures continues to rise, hospitals and doctors must take a closer look at their patient comments and scores and take care to address trouble spots before they become full-blown problems. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality says that “a growing demand among patients for an enhanced service experience and greater participation in their health care is placing further pressure on health care systems to find ways to become more patient-centered.”

Research shows that better patient experiences often mean better outcomes and lower malpractice risk. Better experiences also correlate to everything from more compliant patients and compensation from Medicare and other insurers, licensing and staff retention. It’s no secret that patients are customers. They can and will take their business to the hospitals with better brand reliability, who offer the best experience. For those in the healthcare industry, its time to pay attention to what really matters to patients in order to maximize their successes across the board.

It doesn’t have to be hard to positively impact patient-reported satisfaction scores. Improvements can happen in as few as 4 weeks. Find out how to utilize What Matters surveying in your organization to quickly and effectively measure and improve patient satisfaction. Contact info@goshadow.org to get started or access free resources at goshadow.org/tools.