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TCH Improves in Patient Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is the key to any business. This is often difficult in the healthcare business where “customers” (patients) are often asked to forgo personalized care, to make major decisions with minimal information or information presented in words they can’t understand, are expected to arrange their lives around the hospital’s schedule, and may not even know the names of the people caring for them. 

Recently, Tahlequah City Hospital took steps to improve the satisfaction of patients by enlisting the aid of Press Ganey Associates, Inc., to gather information about customer perceptions of their TCH hospital experience. The administration and staff at TCH used this feedback from patients to assist in fulfilling the hospital’s vision to be the “healthcare provider of choice.” 

After an evaluation of the scores, TCH implemented customer service training for all employees. The results of this training were reflected in the hospital’s rising scores. The results for hospitalized patients who would recommend TCH as their healthcare provider of choice increased 4.6 percent. The overall satisfaction rating also went up by 4.4 percent. 

“Press Ganey solicits information from hospitalized patients in ten different categories that have been shown to have a high degree of relevance to healthcare consumers when they are making a choice of healthcare providers for their own care or recommending healthcare resources to family and friends,” said Donna Dallis, TCHs VP of Performance Improvement. “Once collected, the information is then returned to the TCH executive staff with a detailed analysis of the results.” 

Press Ganey, however, is only one source of customer satisfaction information. Beginning in 2007, the Federal Department of Health and Human Services began making healthcare quality and customer satisfaction information available on its website www.hospitalcompare.hhs.gov. In the spring of this year, local healthcare consumers were able to access this website and view information about patient perceptions of Tahlequah City Hospital. If one looks at the website today, he or she will note that Tahlequah City Hospital provides healthcare quality that is comparable to any of the largest hospitals in the region and does so at a significantly reduced cost to the healthcare consumer. 

Tahlequah City Hospital, however, is not one to sit on their successes.
“We are continuously involved in a process of self evaluation, both internally and with the assistance of outside agencies such as Press Ganey and are engaged in self improvement activities, such as ongoing customer service training,” said Gary Harrington, chairman of the Tahlequah Trust Authority. 

Other recent actions taken that are a direct result of customer feedback are waiting area and patient room renovations, expansion of service lines, efforts to reduce the noise and light levels in patient care units, and select menus for hospitalized patients.
“TCH staff and Governing Board recognize that now more than ever, patient satisfaction and quality care go hand in hand,” said Carol Choate, MSRN, chairperson of the Tahlequah Trust Authority and Quality Assurance committee. “Only by listening to the voices of our customers and acting upon what we hear can we achieve both.”