{"id":14029,"date":"2021-03-15T15:23:21","date_gmt":"2021-03-15T15:23:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.customer-alliance.com\/resources\/article\/healthcare-and-the-importance-of-a-patient-satisfaction-questionnaire\/"},"modified":"2022-04-26T15:50:43","modified_gmt":"2022-04-26T15:50:43","slug":"healthcare-and-the-importance-of-a-patient-satisfaction-questionnaire","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/www.customer-alliance.com\/en\/articles\/healthcare-and-the-importance-of-a-patient-satisfaction-questionnaire\/","title":{"rendered":"Healthcare and the importance of a patient satisfaction questionnaire"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Modern healthcare providers don\u2019t guess about how satisfied their patients are, they know. They rely on data collected from a patient satisfaction questionnaire<\/a> to give them actionable insights. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

But wait, <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is patient satisfaction?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Going beyond effective treatment, patient satisfaction<\/a> measures the contentment of patients\u2019 overall experience with a healthcare provider. Think pre-visit emails, time with staff, waiting room wait and even post-visit communication. Several factors comprise this satisfaction as we\u2019ll discuss below.\u00a0<\/span> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patient satisfaction matters because:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

1 satisfied patient has the power to reach 4 potential patients while 1 dissatisfied patient can negatively affect 10 potential patients<\/b> (1). <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Huge right? So, let\u2019s dive in! <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why doctors\u2019 offices, clinics, and hospitals should invest in patient satisfaction<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

As the healthcare industry<\/a> shifts to become more patient-centred, it is essential individual clinics and hospitals stay up to date by focusing on patient satisfaction. For instance, consider the following reasons:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gain patient loyalty<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Patient expectations are higher now. Moreover, they demand excellent care AND service. They won\u2019t come back unless they feel they\u2019ve been taken care of throughout their entire interaction with your practice or hospital. When your organisation consistently makes efforts to elevate the patient experience, patients will notice and their loyalty will increase! <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, when they receive patient satisfaction survey questions post visit, they feel like their opinion matters. It\u2019s another way of continuing the conversation outside of the doctor\u2019s office and showing empathy. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attract new patients with satisfied ones<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Happy (and yes, unhappy) patients now leave their feedback online for the entire world to see.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Almost <\/span>60% of patients indicate that they\u2019ve chosen a doctor because of the doctor\u2019s positive review<\/b>s and also <\/span>the same percentage said they\u2019ve not selected a doctor due to their negative reviews <\/b>(2). <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you initiate the feedback process and provide patients with a patient satisfaction questionnaire, this can be useful to your online reputation in 3 ways. You can:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Discover a negative experience and attempt to resolve the patient\u2019s issue before they go online with their feedback. <\/span><\/li>
  2. Build your online reputation by inviting patients to leave their feedback on prominent platforms like Google. (Hello Google star ranking!) <\/span><\/li>
  3. Showcase excellent feedback directly on your website to encourage potential patients to book an appointment with your healthcare organisation. <\/span><\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Internal improvements<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    Create an ever-evolving workplace culture. See trends mentioned in the patient satisfaction questionnaire to get insights on areas for improvement. After that, discuss results with staff and brainstorm points of action based on feedback. Certainly, measuring customer satisfaction in healthcare has never been more important and should involve everyone. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Bonus: We also recommend using internal surveys to check in with your staff and advance employee retention. Subsequently check out our Customer Satisfaction Guide for businesses<\/a> for a complete overview.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    [ca-form id=”44600″ align=”right”]<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Which patient satisfaction factors should my organisation care about?<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Tricky question as the answer is\u2014you\u2019ll never truly know til you ask your patients themselves!  <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The best way to understand which factors matter most to your patients is to analyse the patient journey. As the patient journey (and therefore factors) vary by healthcare providers, it\u2019s important that your organisation consider its own, unique patient journey. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Meanwhile, let\u2019s use this patient journey<\/a> as a general guide.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"patient<\/a>
    Patient satisfaction factors along the patient journey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Advanced communication <\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    As the patient journey illustrates, the patient interacts with your hospital or clinic long before they show up for their appointment and also after they leave. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Ideal communication looks like:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n