Improving Patient Satisfaction in the Outpatient BMT Clinic Setting

Patient satisfaction is an overall goal for every clinical area, and many hospitals utilize a standardized survey tool to obtain data on how each specific inpatient or outpatient area of the hospital is performing.  The satisfaction of our patients in the outpatient setting has been a primary focus of the UNC Bone Marrow & Stem Cell Transplant Program.  With larger patient volumes, improving patient satisfaction scores remains a priority.

During the first quarter of 2011, our Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction Scores – the measurement tool utilized by our facility - was in the 78^th percentile (for large health care systems nationally).  Realizing the frequency with which BMT patients must spend time in the clinic setting, patient satisfaction is crucial.  At the close of Fiscal Year 2012, our BMT Clinic ascended to the 95^th percentile and was the top rated clinic of all 84 outpatient clinics in our hospital system. 

Creating an afternoon Clinic Huddle to review patients for the following day was an integral part of improving patient satisfaction.  This huddle includes any team member who has a patient scheduled to be seen the next day.  By meeting each afternoon, communication within the team improved substantially.  Nurses had less confusion about labs requested, APPs were clear which orders needed to be written and nurse coordinators reviewed any patient issues with the group.  Multidisciplinary updates provide an entire picture of the patient.  These huddles augmented team communication to the point where add-on lab draws decreased substantially over the first year. 

A separate phlebotomy area was established and patients arrive at least thirty minutes prior to their appointment to have labs drawn.  This enables results to be in hand by the time the provider sees the patient which expedites their ability to create a plan of care while the patient remains in the clinic. 

Rounding occurred more frequently once patients were in the exam room.  Listening to the voice of the patient helped to identify areas for improvement such as modifying pre-transplant education or waiting room niceties. 

                                                                                                    

Continuing to improve patient satisfaction is a vital programmatic initiative as the number of patients we care for in the outpatient setting continues to grow exponentially as our transplant numbers increase annually.  The flexibility of this Program's team to embrace new practices in order to benefit our patients' outpatient experience is a process change worth sharing.