Improving Patient Satisfaction at a Large Specialty Hospital in New York City
Organization – A large specialty hospital in New York City
Issue – Patient satisfaction, as measured by one of the top two satisfaction measurement companies in healthcare, was below standards in the area of “person cleaning the [patient] room” (Environmental Services personnel). Patient satisfaction scores were tied to performance evaluation for managers. Efforts to make all equipment silent, reduce intrusions, etc. had no impact on scores.
Outcome – Patient satisfaction numbers increased following initial training to acceptable measures (90th+ percentile of similar hospitals) and remained at or above acceptable levels for over six years following the start of the project.
Process – Two day plus one follow up day training based on The Human Element in Customer Service for all Environmental Services personnel including all managers, followed initially by monthly all-team meetings and follow up training. Later, a one-day refresher program was offered 6 months following the training program. All new employees entering the department receive the training and join the monthly meetings.
Consultant/Company – internal organizational development specialists
Country – U.S.A.