March 2019 Issue 109
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In this issue
Internal vs external dilemma A look at options for resourcing your practice to ensure it is managed cost-effectively P16
Virtual is the new reality Digital transformation of your website can help you to manage your patients’ expectations P42
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Attack your billing
It’s time to examine the way your practice’s billing and collection is working P50
Get patients’ feedback . . . . . . too many won’t tell you
By Robin Stride The assessment of patient satisfaction with their private doctors, hospitals and clinics needs a re-think following new Care Quality Com mission (CQC) research showing a widespread reluctance of people to complain. Its study of NHS and private patients found nearly 7m people in England who accessed health or social care services in the last five years had concerns about their care but never raised them. Independent practitioners are now being urged by the pressure group the Private Patients’ Forum (PPF) to do more to encourage people to give feedback, good or bad. With 58% expressing regret about not complaining, the CQC has also launched a ‘Declare Your Care’ campaign encouraging people to share their experiences with the watchdog to inform future inspections. The most common reasons for not raising a concern were: Not knowing how (20%) or whom (33%) to raise it with; Not wanting to be seen as a ‘troublemaker’ (33%); Worries about not being taken seriously (28%). More than a third of people (37%) felt nothing would change as a In association with
result of complaining. But when patients did so, two-thirds found their issue was resolved quickly. And the CQC said this helped the service to improve and people were happy with the outcome. The PPF said: ‘This is a small survey – 2002 people – but if its conclusions really are representative of the private sector nationwide, then there is clearly much to be done to encourage more patient feedback. ‘British patients are notoriously reticent to comment or complain, particularly older patients, but, happily, this is changing, albeit slowly. More patient feedback will help to improve and maintain consistently high standards. ‘Independent practitioners, who are trusted and held in high esteem by their patients, can play a vital role by encouraging patients to voice their opinions, both good and not so good. ‘It is so important to resolve issues quickly before they can escalate and doctors have enormous influence over patient behaviour.’ The PPF added it was important to put the report into context and remember that the vast majority of private patients received excellent standards of care and service. But only a few complaints were too many. A spokesman said: ‘Patients are still
Independent practitioners are being urged to do more to encourage patients to give their frank views in a bid to improve services telling us the system is disjointed and things fall between the cracks. Doctors need to play a bigger role in ensuring a simple clear system and then patients might feel better disposed to offer more feedback.’ David Hare, chief executive of the Independent Healthcare Providers Network, said the ‘Declare Your Care’ campaign would help drive improvements in standards across the whole of the health sector. He told Independent Practitioner Today: ‘Last year’s State of Care report by the CQC into independent acute hospitals highlighted the very high levels of responsiveness in the sector, with over 90% of hospitals rated good or outstanding in this area and providers having a clear track record in swiftly making any necessary improvements in care following inspection, including through proactively seeking the views of patients to improve the patient journey.
‘The sector is not complacent, however, and we look forward to working with the CQC and others on this much-welcomed campaign to encourage more patients to speak up with concerns and further embed a culture of learning in independent healthcare providers.’ The Independent Sector Comp laints Adjudication Service (ISCAS) also welcomed the CQC initiative. It will share the research with its subscribers – most of the independe n t h e a l t h c a r e p r ov i d e r s i n England. Director Sally Taber said: ‘The question that needs to be asked is whether there is accessible information for patients to share their experiences, positive or negative. ‘Independent healthcare facilities should encourage staff to review that information is available in reception areas and consulting rooms.’