Patient experience feedback key to best possible service in local hospitals

An innovative patient survey is being introduced at South Western Sydney Local Health District to provide real time feedback on patient experience.

The My Experience Matters survey uses tablets to give patients and their carers the opportunity to provide real time feedback about their experience.

Amanda Larkin, the District’s chief executive, said the survey was an opportunity for staff to continually improve the service they provided to patients.

“The opportunity to receive real time feedback from our patients is invaluable,” she said.

“Our goal is to provide care that is always safe, high quality and personalised, and receiving immediate feedback from our patients is a huge boost for us.

“The results from My Experience Matters survey can be drilled down to individual department and unit level and will help staff to understand what is working well in their department for patients and carers, as well as areas where patient experience might be improved.”

The survey has initially been implemented at three locations: the Rehabilitation Unit at Camden Hospital, Liverpool Hospital’s Cancer Therapy Centre and ward 2G at Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital.

It is part of the District’s wider Transforming Your Experience (TYE) strategy, which aims to improve the overall experience for staff, patients and carers.

“We will be rolling the survey out to the rest of the District shortly and we look forward to seeing the positive difference it will make for both patients and staff,” Ms Larkin said.

“So far we have received very positive feedback from patients and their carers about how easy it is to use the survey to communicate their thoughts on their care.

[social_quote duplicate=”no” align=”default”]“We have also received positive feedback from managers and staff who welcome the opportunity to gain a greater understanding of what is important for patients about their care.”[/social_quote]

The survey consists of 10 questions that apply to all patients across the District, whether they are inpatients, outpatients or receiving health services in the community or at home.

Ms Larkin said Patient Experience Week, which runs from April 23 to 27, was the perfect time to highlight the good work the District was doing and how the survey was already assisting staff.

“The My Experience Matters survey will give us the opportunity to continue listening and learning from our patients and carers and to take action to improve our services,” she said.