Recognizing Pa. Caregivers during Patient Experience Week

Know the difference between the patient experience and patient satisfaction

April 22, 2022

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact health care, HAP wishes to express sincere gratitude to our health care staff who work tirelessly on the front lines and behind the scenes providing excellent patient experience at all levels of the organization.

Patient Experience (PX) Week is an annual event to celebrate health care staff impacting patient experience every day, providing an opportunity to celebrate accomplishments, re-energize efforts, and honor the people who influence the patient experience. The patient experience is described as “the sum of all interactions, shaped by an organization’s culture that influence patient perceptions across the continuum of care.” This year’s celebration is from April 25–29.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality notes that patient satisfaction and patient experience are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same:

• Patient experience: To assess the patient experience, you must “find out from patients whether something that should happen in a health care setting (such as clear communication with a provider) actually happened or how often it happened.”
• Patient satisfaction: Satisfaction more closely relates to patient expectations, which differ from person to person. “Two people who receive the exact same care, but who have different expectations for how that care is supposed to be delivered, can give different satisfaction ratings because of their different expectations.”

The Beryl Institute provides many creative materials and free resources to help you make PX Week a success in your facility.

HAP salutes the health care professionals committed to applying their knowledge and skills, including those dedicated to the patient experience through their membership in the HAP Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC).

Developed during 2013, and comprised of health care professionals, community leaders, patients, and family members, the HAP PFAC supports hospitals in their patient-and-family-centered-care efforts. Project manager Janette Bisbee, may be contacted for additional information.