France is prioritizing patient experience as a fundamental element of its healthcare system, emphasizing the importance of patients' perspectives throughout their care journeys. Amah Kouévi, the director of the Institut français de l'expérience patient (Ifep), highlighted during his interview with Les Dossiers de Sciences et Avenir the need for healthcare providers to gain insights directly from patients about their experiences.
The term 'patient experience' refers to everything perceived by individuals during their healthcare journeys. "This notion allows emphasis on health challenges such as access to care, clinical management, and human relationships from the patient’s viewpoint," Kouévi explained. Despite healthcare professionals’ dedication to providing the best possible care, they often overlook the need to explore patient feelings, leading to missed opportunities for improvement.
Many professionals anticipate patient needs based on their previous experiences instead of directly asking patients about their expectations. "This can dissipate part of their efforts. Especially for chronic conditions, it is challenging to comprehend situations not lived on a daily basis, even for seasoned practitioners" Kouévi stated.
Practically, he encourages healthcare professionals to leave their formal roles and observe different healthcare settings, such as waiting rooms, to gauge aspects like the impact of noise or the space allowed for companions. One innovative method involved equipping patients with GoPro cameras, allowing healthcare teams to closely follow the patient's experiences from their hospital rooms to operating rooms. These videos revealed important details, such as time spent waiting and the nature of interactions with staff.
The visual insights led to recognizing key moments within the patient path to improve the overall experience, such as establishing trust just before administering anesthesia. "A surgical pathway involves several stages where each professional only sees part of the whole" Kouévi noted.
A different technique involves using questionnaires to assess satisfaction levels. For example, dissatisfaction with hospital meals may stem from various factors, like the meal's timing and quality or limited choices. Evidence suggests simply offering meal alternatives can significantly boost satisfaction levels. Kouévi indicated, "Instead of serving mashed potatoes one day and spaghetti the next, if patients could choose, it could significantly change their satisfaction."
A particularly effective approach is encouraging patients to share their personal experiences. This narration provides insights normally kept private and enhances the engagement of healthcare providers with their improvement initiatives. Kouévi shared, "Hearing from patients directly fosters deep engagement with the improvement process, as professionals understand the real issues faced by patients."
There can be resistance among healthcare staff to adopting these approaches, but Kouévi argues these methodologies provide substantial meaning to their work. By focusing on patient experience, healthcare teams become more united, improving the quality of care delivered. Notably, tracking the daily experiences of women undergoing breast cancer treatment has reportedly extended their lives by several months. This reinforces the notion, as Kouévi emphasized, of patient experience as more than just superficial satisfaction; it is truly a public health priority and necessary for transforming healthcare delivery.
The initiative by French healthcare is not merely about making patients happy, no. It's about integrating their experiences and concerns rigorously within the health system to render it more effective and human-centric.