Real-Time Patient Satisfaction Survey and Improvement Process

The purpose of this article is to describe how one multidisciplinary hospital responded to patient-satisfaction issues and improved communication throughout its organization by implementing a real-time assessment of patient and staff satisfaction for a faster and better-focused improvement process. The survey process is based on eliciting information from several different sources in a manner that allows corrective action plans to be made and implemented within 4 to 8 weeks of patient encounters. Organized groups can then review feedback from the implemented action plans within 9 to 16 weeks of patient encounters. This 4-month process is repeated on a quarterly basis, as lessons learned from the previous cycle are fed into the upcoming survey process for continuous patient-satisfaction improvement. Employees, faculty, and administrators have accepted the Real-Time Patient Satisfaction Survey and Improvement Process as a routine activity within the normal operating structure at the Moffitt Cancer Center. This activity of problem identification-action-feedback has been well integrated in the system and will continue to rotate throughout all patient care clinical services at the Moffitt Cancer Center. The program has become a method for goal-setting and establishing management accountability. As an adaptation of continuous quality improvement, The Real-Time Patient Satisfaction Survey and Improvement Process at the Moffitt Cancer Center is applicable for use in other hospitals and cancer centers in the United States. The general design, materials, and analysis plan can be directed toward the needs of the specific institution (and are available for distribution by contacting the authors).