Abstract
Purpose
The patient-physician relationship is a complex interaction and the importance of effective communication is well documented. The importance and implications of effective physician-patient communication is highlighted by the implementation of Communication Skills as a core competency by ACGME. The purpose of this study was to evaluate anonymous surveys completed by orthopaedic clinic patients to assess their visit experiences and whether they would recommend their physician to a friend or family member.
Method
Data were collected from patients exiting SIUs Division of Orthopaedic Surgery outpatient clinics through the completion of an anonymous survey. The survey was distributed on a sample of days between 2002 and 2004 and again in 2009. Responders were asked to complete the survey and return it prior to leaving the office. Participating surgeons were aware of the project occurring but did not know the dates on which surveys would be collected from their clinic patients. All surveys were scanned for data entry and if there was any difficulty with the scanning process then the data was entered manually.
Results
During the collection period from 2002 to 2004 (Survey I), 305 surveys were collected. During the 2009 collection period (Survey II) 503 surveys were completed for a total of 808 surveys. Patients indicated they would not recommend the surgeon to family/friends following 3.3% of clinical encounters. Surveys noted several behaviors indicative of poor communication: physicians did not sit down during the interaction (5%), failed to introduce themselves (4%), patients perceived the physician was not interested in them (4.7%), the physician did not ask if the patient had questions (9.5%), failed to answer questions adequately (3.9%), used language too complex for the patient (4.8%), and did not educate the patient on their condition (6.5%).
Conclusion
The relationship between physicians and patients has evolved over the past several decades. When a patient has a poor experience with their physician, they are unlikely to recommend them to their friends and family. Our data suggests several areas of focus which, if improved, would lead to more effective patient interactions that ultimately could reduce the number of patients not recommending our providers. Future study will be necessary to examine the impact of quality initiatives being implemented within orthopaedics to determine their impact on patient recommendations.
