The effect of a wearable visual cue on patient satisfaction survey scores in the acute inpatient rehabilitation setting

With a portion of healthcare reimbursement now dependent on the patient’s report of the hospital experience, healthcare systems are looking for ways to improve patient satisfaction scores. In this study, one inpatient physiatrist at an acute inpatient rehabilitation facility wore a button on the right lapel of his white coat at all times which read, “Ask ME about your TREATMENT and PROGRESS!!!” in order to determine if a wearable visual cue prompting the patient to discuss his or her treatment and progress alters Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction Survey (PGPSS) scores. Mean score on the physician-specific PGPSS question “How well the rehabilitation doctor kept you informed about your treatment and progress” was calculated retrospectively for five months before and after the physiatrist donned the button. Comparisons were made to two other inpatient physiatrists. For the button-wearing physiatrist, mean score for the physician-specific patient satisfaction survey question for the five months before donning the button was 88.1 ± 11.5; and, for the five months after donning the button, the mean score was 95.8 ± 5.9. These scores were marginally statistically different (p = 0.07). Conversely, the difference in mean scores over the same time periods for two other inpatient physiatrists who did not wear the button did not approach statistical significance. In conclusion, a wearable visual cue improved the PGPSS score specific to the question the visual cue addressed.