The effect of patient satisfaction scores on physician job satisfaction and burnout

Physician burnout is recognized as reversible with the potential to negatively influence quality of care and patient outcomes. The study objective was to evaluate associations between patient satisfaction scores (PSS) and physicians’ perceptions of job satisfaction and burnout via a physician survey. Eighty two out of 107 report PSS are institutionally tracked, with 23/107 and 39/107 reporting PSS utilization in financial compensation or performance review, respectively. Fifty four out of 107, report pressure to emphasize PSS; 63/107, report PSS having negative effect on job satisfaction; 31/107 considered leaving their job or career due to PSS and 84/107 report PSS contribute to burnout. In the cohort of physicians treating patients with spine pain who responded to this survey, PSS are associated with decreased job satisfaction and increased burnout.

Communication of Bad News

Delivering bad news is a critical part of the patient-physician relationship. Historically, physicians have withheld or incompletely related the diagnosis and prognosis of a patient’s disease. However, the trajectory of medical practice and patient expectations mandates a change in communicating bad news. Poor communication of bad news also affects physician job satisfaction and increases burnout. Empathy is crucial to communicating bad news well. It is a very complex emotion that requires the physician to identify the patient’s reaction to the news being delivered and to react to the patient in a supportive manner. Patients do not find it helpful when the physician underplays the bad part of the news. Emerging research shows that patients prefer pairing of bad news with hope to provide anchors in the overwhelming conversation but not to take away from the gravity of the news. Family and friends can help ameliorate or, unfortunately, augment patient anxiety. Physicians have to be cognizant of the dynamics family and friends bring to the interaction as well. A patient-centered approach—a combination of evidence-based medicine and patient goal-oriented medicine—to delivering bad news is most likely to benefit the patient-physician relationship and decision-making process. The SPIKES and the Expanded Four Habits Model can be used as guidelines for communicating bad news. This review contains 1 figure and 38 references. Key words: communicating bad news, empathy, Expanded Four Habits Model, patient-centered care, SPIKES

Communication of Bad News

Delivering bad news is a critical part of the patient-physician relationship. Historically, physicians have withheld or incompletely related the diagnosis and prognosis of a patient’s disease. However, the trajectory of medical practice and patient expectations mandates a change in communicating bad news. Poor communication of bad news also affects physician job satisfaction and increases burnout. Empathy is crucial to communicating bad news well. It is a very complex emotion that requires the physician to identify the patient’s reaction to the news being delivered and to react to the patient in a supportive manner. Patients do not find it helpful when the physician underplays the bad part of the news. Emerging research shows that patients prefer pairing of bad news with hope to provide anchors in the overwhelming conversation but not to take away from the gravity of the news. Family and friends can help ameliorate or, unfortunately, augment patient anxiety. Physicians have to be cognizant of the dynamics family and friends bring to the interaction as well. A patient-centered approach—a combination of evidence-based medicine and patient goal-oriented medicine—to delivering bad news is most likely to benefit the patient-physician relationship and decision-making process. The SPIKES and the Expanded Four Habits Model can be used as guidelines for communicating bad news. This review contains 1 figure and 38 references. Key words: communicating bad news, empathy, Expanded Four Habits Model, patient-centered care, SPIKES

Communication of Bad News

Delivering bad news is a critical part of the patient-physician relationship. Historically, physicians have withheld or incompletely related the diagnosis and prognosis of a patient’s disease. However, the trajectory of medical practice and patient expectations mandates a change in communicating bad news. Poor communication of bad news also affects physician job satisfaction and increases burnout. Empathy is crucial to communicating bad news well. It is a very complex emotion that requires the physician to identify the patient’s reaction to the news being delivered and to react to the patient in a supportive manner. Patients do not find it helpful when the physician underplays the bad part of the news. Emerging research shows that patients prefer pairing of bad news with hope to provide anchors in the overwhelming conversation but not to take away from the gravity of the news. Family and friends can help ameliorate or, unfortunately, augment patient anxiety. Physicians have to be cognizant of the dynamics family and friends bring to the interaction as well. A patient-centered approach—a combination of evidence-based medicine and patient goal-oriented medicine—to delivering bad news is most likely to benefit the patient-physician relationship and decision-making process. The SPIKES and the Expanded Four Habits Model can be used as guidelines for communicating bad news. This review contains 1 figure and 38 references. Key words: communicating bad news, empathy, Expanded Four Habits Model, patient-centered care, SPIKES

Improving Patient Experience of Care Providers in a Multispecialty Ambulatory Pediatrics Practice

Patient experience is positively associated with superior medical outcomes, clinical quality, patient safety measures, physician job satisfaction, doctor-patient communication, and patient compliance with treatment recommendations. A concrete pediatrics-focused methodology for improving patient experience in a multispecialty ambulatory setting has not been described, nor has the impact on practice outcomes been assessed. The primary aim of this study was to improve patient experience care provider scores at a single multiclinic children’s hospital in the Midwest to the 70th percentile in a 5-year period. The secondary aim sought to determine the impact of quality improvement efforts on practice growth, patient complaint rate, and provider/staff engagement. Patient experience was measured by returned Press-Ganey surveys. Interventions involved establishing infrastructure, promoting feedback and transparency, providing education, and transforming culture. Provider scores improved from the 19th to the 70th percentile within 5 years. Practice volume increased by 17.1%; patient complaint/grievance frequency decreased 33-fold; and provider/staff engagement did not appreciably change.

Communication in The Clinical Routine of Neonatologists

Introduction Communication is essential to clinical routine, especially in NICUs with their vulnerable patients and the special team caring for them. Communication breakdowns and resulting treatment errors are described in the literature. The aim of this study is to provide an initial quantitative assessment of medical communication in a NICU. Methods For task analysis, 15 Level III-NICU physicians were accompanied for 60 days in early and late shifts; each physician completed the COPSOQ questionnaire. Recorded tasks were assigned to main task categories and subcategories. Results A total of 550 h of main and 100 h of secondary tasks were recorded, on average 9 h daily. The most time-consuming main activity was “Communication” (3 h), followed by “Indirect care/Administration” (2 h) and “Direct patient care” (1.5 h). “Communication” mainly consisted of discussions with colleagues and during early shifts. At 2 min, communication with nursing personnel during rounds was especially low. Communication showed a negative correlation to physician job satisfaction. Discussion This work shows the suspected high proportion of communication in a NICU, especially among physicians themselves. The effectiveness of this communication is not assessable. However, a low proportion of communication with nursing staff is noticeable and reflects the variabiliy in team communication. Improvement of communication is necessary through training on and the application of existing techniques for handoffs and rounds.