Good Press Ganey for ER. Possible??

[5n2_is4u]

I work in a small ER that sees a large number of frequent fliers. The patient satisfaction scores are pretty low. How do you increase the satisfaction level of a public that feels "their needs are met" when they receive narcotics as fast as possible? Any ideas? What do you do in your ER's?

[Altra, BSN, RN]

I've worked in several ERs now and I believe that good Press Gainey Scores are a result of:

--The staff doing their best to keep pt's and families informed and comfortable

--The length of stay and quickness of access to care

--The presence of a television in the treatment room

--The willingness of the staff to use lots and lots of narcotics

--The willingness of the staff to seem like they believe lots and lots of BS

--A low percentage of low/no income/public assistance pts

This is not to say that low/no income/public assistance pts are always ungrateful or have a huge entitlement mentality, but it certainly seems so.

Joe

I completely agree with 1 - 5. However in my experience ... it's not the patients you have grouped into #6 who fill out Press Ganey surveys. It's Very Important People who didn't factor the unexpected into their understanding of life.

[Guest219794]

I would love to see the Press Gainey scorres of those who come to the Er for an emergency. i suspect they would be pretty high.

It is rare that I see a patient who is having an emergency who is not appreciative.

[gardengal1, ASN, RN]

Are you kidding? There are very few people who give good reviews to the ER. The waits are too long, the admission process is too long, it took the physician too long to come back in and talk with them; they didn't get enough pain medication; they didn't get the prescription they wanted, and so on......... I have never seen an ER with high scores. People are NOT appreciative of the care they receive in an ER.

[Guest219794]

I have worked in several ER's and don't pay any attention to Press Ganey or any other scores. not my concern. My job is to provide competent care.

In my experience, those experiencing a true emergency appreciate the care. I get a lot of Thank Yous.

[5n2_is4u]

I agree hherrn and gardengal. So what do you say to the staff that want to change the process to raise scores? I do the best job I can do every day....people that have a genuine NEED to be in the ER are very appreciative. The rest of them will never be happy no matter how many warm blankets and fluffed pillows we provide. Perhaps if we tucked some extra Percocet in the pillow case that would make them happy!!

[Scooty Puff Jr]

The hospital system I work for want to provide "clients with a positive experience, similar to Disney World." Talk about an impossible goal, last time I checked people don't go see Mickey for a STEMI or when a pet iguana bites through 70% of their thumb.

Thats just goofy (sorry I couldn't resist.)

[Joe B1]

I tell you something else. I think pt satisfaction surveys are a total waste of time. One facility I worked at surveyed 1% of the people we saw every month and, not surprisingly, the scores were quite variable. 1% is statistically useless. That's a blind man with his fingertip on the skin of an elephant and asking for his description of the entire animal from that.

I can't confirm this, but I suspect that most other healthcare organizations survey in similar sample sizes. Again, a waste of time.

[Altra, BSN, RN]

I tell you something else. I think pt satisfaction surveys are a total waste of time. One facility I worked at surveyed 1% of the people we saw every month and, not surprisingly, the scores were quite variable. 1% is statistically useless. That's a blind man with his fingertip on the skin of an elephant and asking for his description of the entire animal from that.

I can't confirm this, but I suspect that most other healthcare organizations survey in similar sample sizes. Again, a waste of time.

Absolutely right. And healthcare organizations pay hefty fees to Press Ganey and other consulting companies for the privilege of getting those 1% surveys, too.

Why is the futility of this so hard to understand?

[Joe B1]

Why is it so hard to understand? They don't want to understand it. There are too many salaries that depend on these exercises in futility. It's make-work for the executive class. Business where it has no business being in business.

If they understood it, and saw it for what it really is, they'd have to put a lot of people out of business, themselves included. The function of any healthcare executive should only be to come to the people at the pt's bedside and say, "What do you need to do your job better?" and "I'll get that for you."

[cookienay]

It is possible. I am not a fan of PG, but it is a vital part of my facility's culture, so I must be on board if I want to be sane.

We are about a 50 bed ED that sees at last count around 80K patients a year. Our administration has gotten on board with making things better in the ED (getting beds assigned, resources, etc...) and it has made a huge improvement in my opinion.

Our client base is 80% medicaid/medicare (if not higher- this is my estimation). We are a poor community for the most part. And... our PGs rock. You have to have strong leadership, administration support, and employees who realize they exist to serve the needs of the employer, not the other way around. (no, I am NOT managment- did that 10 years ago). We have a high percentage of FF, drug seekers, and a HUGE Rx drug problem in this area.

So even with all of those issues, we do pretty well on PG, give great emergency care, and send our FFs and DSs away with a pat on the head until next time.

Hope this helps, please feel free to PM me if you want specifics on what we do to get those good surveys.

[MacD]

How about gumball machines in the lobby filled with Percocet? Snicker snicker!

Just kidding!!!

[mcknis]

We have had an increase in 4 points in the last year alone in our ED survey results. From 85% to 89%. We are really proud of it, but have just acquired this to the same care done by new and different employees. The bad ones weeded out!