Decrease in Patients’ Perceptions of Care Across All Settings

On Nov. 4, South Bend, Ind-based Press Ganey, a healthcare company known for developing and distributing patient satisfaction surveys, conducted national analyses of client Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) data to gauge shifts in patients’ likelihood to recommend their healthcare experience to family and friends since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the analyses, “The findings show a national decrease in patients’ perceptions of care across all care settings, most significantly in areas related to access and brand perceptions:

• Medical practices saw the greatest decreases in likelihood to recommend scores regarding patients’ ability to access timely care, including phone response, ability to book an appointment when needed, seeing a doctor within 15 minutes and timeliness of test results.
• Emergency departments saw the greatest decrease in scores around getting care within 30 minutes of showing up to the ED and patients waiting to be acknowledged.
• The overall number of patients who would definitely recommend a hospital to their families and friends decreased by 4.5 percent.
• The overall number of patients who rated their hospital experience a 10 out of 10, with 0 being the worst hospital possible and 10 being the best hospital possible, also decreased by 4 percent.
• Overall, New England states saw the greatest decrease in patients’ likelihood to recommend, whereas Southeastern states saw the least amount of change in patients’ perceptions.”

Further, “Upon further analysis, Press Ganey juxtaposed responses from patients diagnosed with COVID-19 versus non-COVID patients. Findings showed that 75 percent of COVID patients would definitely recommend a hospital to their family and friends, compared to 72 percent for non-COVID patients.”

Chrissy Daniels, chief experience officer at Press Ganey was quoted in the article presenting the findings saying that “At a time when health systems are overrun or implementing crisis standards of care, patient experience should be leveraged as operating data as opposed to punitive data. Rather than emphasizing declines in performance, now is the time for leaders to motivate staff by sharing positive patient comments and to reinforce exemplary behaviors that are key drivers of patient satisfaction.”

The article concludes by explaining that it is important for healthcare leaders to review distinctions within patient populations and care settings to understand the “why” behind the recurring themes.