Patients see value in getting to know their doctors
Patients have a positive reaction to seeing photos of their clinicians and learning what they do, according to new data presented at ACC Quality Summit Virtual.
The study included patients admitted to a facility’s progressive care unit for more than 24 hours from December 2020 to April 2021. A “clinician team roster” was given to patients when they were admitted to primary cardiology service.
Approximately 24 hours after being admitted, patients would receive a questionnaire asking them to identify various team members and define their roles. They were also asked to use a five-point Likert scale to rate “how important recognizing team members was to their care.”
Overall, giving patients that clinician team roster was associated with increased recognition of each clinician’s name and face. The impact was even greater when masking requirements were put into place, making it harder for patients to “see the clinician behind the mask.”
Also, patients gave being able to recognize your primary physicians an average score of 4.67 out of 5. For patients who were admitted for longer than eight days, that average score increased to 4.75 out of 5.
In addition, patients gave being able to understand your primary physicians’ roles a 4.57 out of 5.
“Patient satisfaction has been shown to correlate with decreased hospital readmission rates, which saves costs by keeping patients healthy and out of the hospital,” lead author Paul K. Han, MD, a resident physician at the University of Maryland Medical Center, said in a news release. “Our initiative may also encourage patients to become more engaged with their health, potentially improving compliance and facilitating the delivery of high-quality care from medical providers.”
More information about ACC Quality Summit Virtual is available on the American College of Cardiology’s website. The meeting runs through Oct. 1.
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.