Health and Medical Administration Commons^™

First, Do No Harm: The Patient's Experience Of Avoidable Suffering As Harm, Ashley Bauer Mha

Patient Experience Journal

Although my entire career has been spent in Patient Experience, nothing I have learned from data, evidence-based practice, or experience-based correlations, has been near as impactful as what I learned from being a patient. This article discusses my own experiences as a patient. I ask readers to consider instances of avoidable suffering as sources of harm that negatively impact patient perceptions, erode trust in care providers and healthcare delivery systems, and create barriers to engaging patients in their care. Recognizing how avoidable suffering creates harm challenges traditional views of Patient Experience as hospitality-based “soft skills” and helps to establish patient …

Elevating The Discourse On Experience In Healthcare’S Uncertain Times, Jason A. Wolf Phd, Cpxp

Patient Experience Journal

Over the last five years, we have been inspired by the breadth of contributions that have helped shape the experience landscape through PXJ as well as the reach that the conversation on patient experience has had. Both the authors and readers of PXJ reinforce that the conversation on patient experience and the human experience in healthcare is not one dominated by national intent or even policy. While for some motivation has come in some part from mandated action, for most tackling this idea in healthcare is it grounded in two core realities. The first, in healthcare at its core we …

Call For Submissions - Special Issue July 2019: The Role Of Technology And Innovation In Patient Experience, Patient Experience Journal

Patient Experience Journal

Patient Experience Journal (PXJ) is excited to announce the call for submissions for its July 2019 special issue on the topic of the role of technology in patient & family experience. A focus on technology and innovation will be essential in healthcare experience, requiring new ways of thinking and doing and the technologies and tools to ensure efficiencies, expand capacities and extend boundaries of care.

This special issue is open to all authors conducting cutting-edge research, implementing innovative practices or with powerful experiences to share around efforts in either creating or implementing technology focused on positively impacting the patient experience …

Condition Help: 10 Years Of Experience Enhancing Our Culture Of Family Engagement, Andrew Mccormick, Catherine Polak, Michael Fox, Michele Carlson, Charles Guthrie, Michael Decker, Diane Hupp, Gabriella Butler, Andrew Urbach

Patient Experience Journal

“Condition Help” is a family activated rapid response team designed to enhance a partnership between providers and the family. Calling a “Condition Help” results in the rapid arrival of a response team (physician, nurse administrator and patient representative) that assesses the clinical status, listens to families’ concerns and promotes communication to move clinical care forward. “Condition Help” has been an active program for the last 10 years at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center) and has assisted in the care of 608 patient encounters. This article outlines the experience gained using this vital program, summarizes …

Wait Time Reality Check: The Convergence Of Process, Perception, And Expectation, Marian Hill, Lorianne Classen, Andrea Romay, Erika Diaz

Patient Experience Journal

There are few experiences as ubiquitous to patients as the experience of waiting. It is an occurrence that transcends diagnosis, is common to all demographics, and is shared across the continuum of care. The experience can be frustrating and full of ambiguity for patients and their families. Wait time and delays can lead to patients sensing a loss of control and magnify the feelings of anxiety they may already be suffering. In an effort to improve patient experience, a framework was developed to examine patient satisfaction as a function of expectations, perceptions, and reality. The process domain focused on the …

Family Experience Tracers: Patient Family Advisor Led Interviews Generating Detailed Qualitative Feedback To Influence Performance Improvement, Kathryn Taff, Sheryl Chadwick, Deejo Miller

Patient Experience Journal

Patient Family Advisors (PFAs) are integral partners in quality improvement processes at Children’s Mercy Kansas City. Mimicking Joint Commission patient tracers, the Family Experience Tracer program was created to gather perspectives from end users of care and provide valuable insights regarding the patient experience. The Patient and Family Engagement team collaborates with departmental and organizational leadership to define the scope of the tracer project and determine meaningful topics to elicit feedback from patients and families. Tracers are conducted across the continuum of care and are led by a Patient Family Advisor to establish an immediate peer relationship. Patients and families …

Can An Interactive Application Be Used To Collect Meaningful Feedback From Paediatric Patients And Their Parents In A Hospital Setting?, Janelle O'Neill, Graham R. Reeks, Lauren Kearney

Patient Experience Journal

The objective of this study was to determine the acceptability of using an interactive application (Fabio the Frog) to understand the experiences and perspectives of children and parents/carers regarding their health care encounter for the purpose of quality improvement and consumer feedback. Children’s perspectives of their healthcare were collected via the interactive application through the use of a validated survey, the Children’s Perceptions of Healthcare Survey (CPHS). The acceptability of eliciting views from children and parents via an interactive application platform was collected using an additional survey designed for this purpose. Data were collected in two phases. Overall, healthcare experiences …

What Constitutes The Patient Experience Of Children? Findings From The Photo Elicitation And The Video Diary Study, Nina Karisalmi, Hanna Stenhammar, Johanna Kaipio

Patient Experience Journal

Patient experience (PX) is getting attention among researchers and healthcare service providers, but little is known about the experiences of child patients and how to explore those. This paper reports findings from a study in which two participatory research methods, photo elicitation and video diary, were applied to investigate the elements of children’s PX in the context of children’s hospital. The aim was to find out what elements constitute the PX of children aged 7–16 years. The research data were gathered in 2016–2017. Twenty-two child patients participated in the study: eight children aged between 7 and 10 in the photo …

Breaking Bad News And The Importance Of Compassionate Palliative Care Of The Infant, William S. Sessions Ii, Sean Y. Kow, Elizabeth Waldrop, Kayle Stevenson, Ayo Olanrewaju, Thu Tran, Mubariz Naqvi

Patient Experience Journal

Bad news to parents regarding their infant is information that negatively impacts the parent’s feelings and view of the present and/or future. It is implemented in situations with feelings of no hope or those that induce a threat to a parent’s mental and physical well-being. The term is difficult to define as it is based on parent’s subjective feelings. However, it is important to be aware of the impact of bad news as it can cause severe anguish and stress on the parent’s emotional stability. The style of delivering bad news has a significant impact on the physician/parent relationship and …

Life With My Baby In A Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Embracing The Family Integrated Care Model, Yasmin Lalani

Patient Experience Journal

This paper is a personal narrative that describes the components of the Family Integrated Care Model in a neonatal intensive care unit in Canada. I begin by introducing the reader with a brief story of how my son came to be admitted into a NICU. Next, I discuss three aspects of the Family Integrated Care Model that I found to be most striking: medical rounds, “do-ups” and skin-to-skin contact. I also discuss how my immersion in this healthcare setting for three months was a form of autoethnographic fieldwork, as I experienced the NICU both as a parent and a health …

What Medicine Can Learn From Pediatrics: A Mother's Perspective, Nancy Michaels

Patient Experience Journal

As a mother of a young adult child with Aspergers syndrome, as well as being a long-term patient myself (liver transplant in 2005), I have extensive experience in both camps. Recently my 20-year old son was admitted to a children’s hospital for a twisted colon that had to be surgically reduced. As the parent of a child with special needs and related physical health-related issues connected to him being on the autism spectrum, I was naturally very concerned about him entering a hospital (perhaps PTSD based on my own experience at moments). Surprising to me, the experience was a very …

Partners For Excellence: Committed To Meaningful Partnerships With Patients And Families In Pediatrics, Rachel Biblow, Msw, Sara Toomey Md, Mphil, Mph, Msc

Patient Experience Journal

Although the landscape in pediatrics continues to shift and change, one of the keys to our continued success remains the same… it’s about partnership. It’s clear the element of partnership is well woven through our organizations as illustrated by many of us having patient and family advisory councils, family consultants, and family partners. While this foundation is strong and essential, we must do more to truly listen, recognize the value of patient and family involvement, act upon the information shared, openly discuss issues, and strive for better together. True partnership with patients and families requires us to shift the paradigm …

Lessons For Patient Experience From The Voices Of Pediatrics And Children’S Hospitals, Jason A. Wolf Phd, Cpxp

Patient Experience Journal

This special issue on patient & family experience in children’s hospitals and pediatric care underlines pediatrics’ position as a leader in the experience journey. In pediatrics and children’s hospitals significant efforts are made to the ensure the environment is welcoming and comfortable, there is a commitment to communicating to patients – the children that are cared for – in a way they can understand, and there is a clear intention of engaging family members as an integral part of the care experience. In acknowledging that this is a special issue on pediatrics, we would miss a significant opportunity if we …

What Are The Most Important Dimensions Of Quality For Addiction And Mental Health Services From The Perspective Of Its Users?, Priscilla Liu, Shawn Currie, Jassandre Adamyk-Simpson

Patient Experience Journal

There is a need to better engage service users in improving their experience with the care received in Addiction and Mental Health (A&MH). Dimensions of patient experience that are most salient to A&MH service users still remain to be properly defined from the patient perspective. This research focuses on identifying key domains of service experience important to patients of Addiction and Mental Health using patient focus groups. In addition, through a patient and family advisory committee, patients were also engaged as co-partners of the research team. The patient advisors had a major role in overseeing the research project, assisting with …

Exploring Workforce Confidence And Patient Experiences: A Quantitative Analysis, Katie M. Owens, Stephanie Keller

Patient Experience Journal

Confidence is recognized as one of the most influential factors to affect performance. Individual, leader, and team confidence play essential roles in achieving success and the absence of confidence has been connected with failure. While confidence is not a substitute for competency, it creates trusting relationships, empowerment, and resiliency to persevere when challenges arise. Objective: In this study, we examined workforce confidence in the patient experience and patient perceptions of their experience of care. Methods: We compared responses to the Patient-Centered Excellence Survey (PCES) from 41 United States hospitals, measuring workforce confidence in the patient experience provided, to patient’s ratings …

An Exploration Of Patients’ Experience Of Nurses’ Use Of Point-Of-Care Information Technology In Acute Care, Leigh Mcnicol, Anastasia F. Hutchinson, Beverley Wood, Mari Botti, Bernice Redley

Patient Experience Journal

The rapid introduction of technology into acute healthcare settings, specifically the presence of point-of-care health information technology at patients’ bedsides, is expected to impact patients’ healthcare experience by altering nurse-patient interactions. This research was a multi-method naturalistic pilot study designed to explore patients’ perception of their interactions with nurses using bedside point-of-care health information technology in acute care. Data were collected using observation, interviews and surveys. Twenty-four participants were purposefully recruited from medical and surgical wards, to capture variability in their self-reported confidence with information technology; 29% were not confident, 38% were somewhat confident and 33% were completely confident with …

Family-Centered Caregiving From Hospital To Home: Coping With Trauma And Building Capacity With The Hope For Families Model, Anna Newcomb, L Gordon Moore, Holly C. Matto

Patient Experience Journal

Informal caregivers and families play a significant role in the recovery process of trauma survivors. However, the needs and outcomes of orthopedic caregiving family members in the months following traumatic injury have received almost no attention in the literature. Our study sought to understand the factors impacting orthopedic trauma families’ experience and their ability to cope and provide care post-acute hospitalization. Based on these findings, we designed a hospital-based program to enhance family coping and adjustment post-discharge. Caregivers (N=12) of patients with orthopedic trauma injury engaged in three in-depth semi-structured face-to-face interviews to identify their most salient concerns. Once home, …

The Sherpa Meets Maslow: Medicine And The Hierarchy Of Needs, Rana Lee Adawi Awdish Md Fccp

Patient Experience Journal

A critical care physician returning to medicine after her own critical illness experiences a crisis of orientation. She finds she can no longer serve as the Voice of Medicine. She replaces the former construct with a more humble model, in which the physician serves as an intermediary. She equates this new role to that of the Sherpas of Nepal. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs forms the mountain, as she reimagines her role in her patients’ lives.

The Consumer Has Spoken: Patient Experience Is Now Healthcare’S Core Differentiator, Jason A. Wolf Phd

Patient Experience Journal

In just a few days we will celebrate Patient Experience Journal’s (PXJ) 4^th anniversary since our inaugural publication. In these 4 short and quick years we have seen 163 articles published in our first four volumes that have stirred a significant focus on building the evidence base in patient experience. Not only has PXJ served as the central clearing house for thoughtful research, measurable cases, and insightful narratives, but it also has reinforced the breadth and depth of what patient experience truly encompasses. This integrated view was reinforced by the very voices of healthcare’s consumers in The Beryl Institute’s …

Patient Experience In The Behavioral Health Setting: Key Best Practices Throughout An Organizational Journey, Mark L. D'Agostino, Tena Vizner, Daniel Wald, Linda Espinosa, Rick Evans

Patient Experience Journal

NewYork-Presbyterian/Westchester Division, a clinical affiliate of Weill Cornell Medicine, is a 260-bed hospital providing inpatient and outpatient behavioral health care for children, adolescents, adults and older adults. From 2004-2010 the hospital’s patient experience scores on the Press Ganey® Inpatient Psychiatry Survey improved from the 14th to 53rd percentile nationally. We primarily attribute this to joining the Planetree® Affilliate Network. Planetree is a mission based not-for-profit organization that partners with healthcare organizations around the world and across the care continuum to represent the patient voice and advance how professional caregivers engage with patients and families. In 2011, hourly rounding was redesigned …

“We Were Learning Together And It Felt Good That Way.” A Case Study Of A Participatory Group Music Program For Cancer Patients, Laurie Sadowski

Patient Experience Journal

Though there are similarities to music therapy, the field of community music in healthcare, while in its infancy, is steadily growing. This case study explored how semi-formal, active music-making can play a role in illness and recovery and provide patients with a sense of voice, connection, and community, and the efficacy of community music programming in a hospital. Six participants began and three participants completed a 6-week music class learning the ukulele. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used as a method for data analysis from semi-structured pre-questionnaires, transcribed classes, transcribed post-interviews, and weekly questionnaires from both the participants and the …

Using Appreciative Inquiry As A Framework To Enhance The Patient Experience, Kerry Moorer Mba, Schawan Kunupakaphun, Elilzabeth Delgado, Matthew Moody, Christina Wolf Msn, Rn, Cnl, Karen Moore Rn, Ms, Fache, Pracha Eamranond Md, Mph

Patient Experience Journal

The following case depicts the journey of a non-profit hospital in an under-served community and its attempts to turn around suffering patient experience. The Hospital turned to the theories of Appreciative Inquiry and the power of a strengths-based approach to create a framework to support the patient experience initiatives. Hospital leadership led the formation of a Patient Experience Team to implement ten initiatives in order increase the top box score in the domain of willingness to recommend the hospital, as that was selected as a global measure of success for the overall improvement project.

Patient Experiences In Intensive Care Units: A Systematic Review, Serpil Topçu, Şule Ecevit Alpar, Bilgi Gülseven, Ayda Kebapçı

Patient Experience Journal

The aim of this systematic review is to analyze the data gathered from studies conducted to determine patient experiences in intensive care and levels of the recollection of the intensive care period that were published between December, 1998 – April, 2013. The systematic review was carried out screening of the related publications. The findings of the systematic review were studied under the following two titles: “remembering the intensive care period” and “recalled experiences” of patients. Studying 15 papers which were found suitable to the inclusion criteria of the review indicated that majority of the patients had recollection of the intensive …

Operationalizing Person-Centered Care Practices In Long-Term Care: Recommendations From A “Resident For A Day” Experience, Jennifer L. Johs-Artisensi

Patient Experience Journal

As the senior population continues to age, long-term care is positioned for growth and care recipients are demanding more person-centered care. While long-term care leaders may understand and believe in the value of person-centered care, sometimes operationalizing practices to ensure its delivery can be challenging. Using an ethnographic approach, over three years, 159 long-term care administrator-in-training practicum students each lived as a resident for 24 hours in a nursing home. Following the experience, using the Picker Institute’s framework, each participant identified and justified an Always Experience® – an optimal experience they believed should routinely occur for every long-term care resident. …

Maintaining Public Health Insurance Benefits: How Primary Care Clinics Help Keep Low-Income Patients Insured, Rose L. Harding, Jennifer D. Hall, Jennifer Devoe, Heather Angier, Rachel Gold, Christine Nelson, Sonja Likumahuwa-Ackman, John Heintzman, Aleksandra Sumic, Deborah J. Cohen

Patient Experience Journal

Low-income families struggle to obtain and maintain public health insurance. We identified strategies used by Community Health Centers (CHCs) to assist patients with insurance applications, and assessed patients’ receptivity to these efforts. Observational cross-case comparative study with four CHCs in Oregon. We observed insurance assistance processes, and interviewed 26 clinic staff and 18 patients/family members. Qualitative data were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Patients’ understanding of eligibility status, reapplication schedules, and how to apply, were major barriers to insurance enrollment. Clinic staff addressed these barriers by reminding patients when applications were due, assisting with applications as needed, and tracking …

Patient Safety: Just Ask. Patients As Reporters Of Real-Time Safety Data; A Pilot Project To Improve Patient Safety In Secondary Care, Thomas A. Cairns Dr, Iain Mccallum Mr

Patient Experience Journal

The Berwick review into patient safety recommended ‘involving patients in the healthcare organisation and seeking out the patient voice as an essential asset to monitor safety.’ (1) However routine data collection from patients in our institution is retrospective and doesn't focus on safety. Our objective was to create a patient-centred mechanism to monitor patient-perceived safety concerns and provide immediate resolution of highlighted issues. A pragmatic 6-question questionnaire was developed containing 4 scored and 2 free text questions. This questionnaire was piloted and adjusted before being administered to all inpatients meeting the inclusion criteria in our institution on one day. Safety …

Patient And Provider Experiences With Relationship, Information, And Management Continuity, Jeanette Jackson, Gail Mackean, Tim Cooke, Markus Lahtinen

Patient Experience Journal

From 2003 to 2014, the Health Quality Council of Alberta (HQCA) monitored patient experiences with healthcare services through a biennial Satisfaction and Experience with Healthcare Services (SEHCS) survey. The findings consistently showed a direct link between coordination of care, an aspect of continuity of care, and healthcare outcomes. Specifically, it showed that better coordination is linked to positive outcomes; the reverse is also true. Given the critical role continuity of care plays in the healthcare system, the HQCA conducted in-depth interviews, interactive feedback sessions and focus groups with patients and providers to explore factors that influence both seamless and fragmented …

Healthcare Providers Versus Patients' Understanding Of Health Beliefs And Values, Betty M. Kennedy, Matloob Rehman, William D. Johnson, Michelle B. Magee, Robert Leonard, Peter T. Katzmarzyk

Patient Experience Journal

This study examined how well healthcare providers perceive and understand their patients’ health beliefs and values compared to patients’ actual beliefs, and to determine if communication relationships maybe improved as a result of healthcare providers’ understanding of their patients’ illness from their perspective. A total of 61 participants (7 healthcare providers and 54 patients) were enrolled in the study. Healthcare providers and patients individually completed survey instruments and each participated in a structured focus group. Healthcare provider and patient differences revealed that patients perceived greater meaning of their illness (p = 0.038), and a greater preference for partnership (p = …

Turning A Blind Eye: How Lack Of Communication With Er Nurses Nearly Cost A Patient Permanent Vision Loss, Kenneth Royal, April Kedrowicz

Patient Experience Journal

This narrative presents a case in which a patient was treated for conjunctivitis, but a breakdown in several layers of communication (between the hospital and the patient, and between hospital personnel) resulted in multiple medical errors that nearly costs the patient permanent vision loss. This real-life case underscores how simple communication errors may lead to life-altering consequences. Recommendations for improving communication to ensure similar errors do not happen to others are provided.

Rebalancing The Patient Experience: 20 Years Of A Pendulum Swing, Tiffany Christensen

Patient Experience Journal

This essay looks back at two decades of the patient experience movement. The evolution of patient experience includes moving from a belief system in which patients and families are solely the recipients of care to a model in which patients and families are co-designing treatment plans, systems and policies. This evolution has taken time and continues to evolve to this day. As the pendulum swings, we see that we have made great progress and, simultaneously, found ourselves with all new challenges to overcome.