Emerging Tech Trends Reshaping the Future of Patient Experience

This blog post is the third in the series "Elevating Patient Experience in 2024" — a comprehensive guide where we discuss the various elements of patient experience, the role of tools like feedback and complaint forms, strategies organisations can implement to create a holistic and positive care experience, MEG's Patient Experience Module, and more. Read the previous blogs here:

1. Patient-Centered Care: Strategies and Tools for Effective Patient Feedback

2. Strategies for Success: A Comprehensive Guide to Improving Patient Experience in Healthcare

Digital technology is currently playing a pivotal role in reshaping the healthcare landscape. An increasing number of healthcare organisations are replacing legacy and analog systems with cutting-edge digital solutions, from appointment bookings to groundbreaking robot-assisted surgeries, showcasing the impact of this transformative shift. Reports indicate that the revenue of the global digital healthcare market in 2023 was $180 billion, poised to reach $550 billion over the next five years.

This tech rise is not only revolutionising healthcare globally, but is also fundamentally altering the patient experience, transforming how patients receive care and engage with the healthcare system. Today, technology empowers patients to become active participants in their care and advocate for their well-being, contributing to a patient-centric and holistic healthcare experience, ultimately improving clinical outcomes.

This blog post delves into some of the most prominent and emerging technology trends transforming and improving the patient experience while providing a glimpse of what's to come in the future.

1. Real-time feedback systems

Feedback is a crucial tool that enables healthcare organisations to understand the perspectives of patients and their families, facilitating the delivery of patient-centric care tailored to each individual's needs.

Until a few years ago, a majority of organisations relied on traditional methods like paper or telephone surveys, suggestion boxes, and face-to-face interviews. However, these methods often fell short in terms of scalability, efficiency, and the ability to capture real-time feedback.

Today, thanks to technological advancements, providers can use digital platforms and automated systems to streamline the timely collection of patient feedback and gain direct insights into patient experiences, all in real time. They can also make immediate adjustments to services and care, identify and resolve concerns before escalation, and ultimately strengthen the patient-provider relationship.

MEG's Feedback Tool

MEG provides a digital solution that enables healthcare providers to collect real-time patient, family, and staff feedback through fully-customisable surveys across multiple channels such as mobile devices, email, website, and SMS. Patient Experience and Quality Improvement teams can access all survey data from a centralised dashboard, analyse trends and opportunities for growth, allocate resources effectively, and make data-driven decisions on future policies and improvement initiatives. The predictive analytics capabilities of the tool also allow healthcare professionals to forecast potential issues or areas of concern and proactively address them.

Future Outlook

As technology advances, the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI), predictive analysis, and Natural Language Processing (NLP) will enable a more sophisticated analysis of real-time feedback, enabling healthcare providers to anticipate patient needs and preferences. This, in turn, will allow them to deliver more personalised care, ultimately enhancing the overall patient experience.

2. Telehealth and Virtual Care

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of telehealth and virtual care like never before, allowing patients to access healthcare services from the comfort of their own homes. Telehealth provides a plethora of advantages, mainly convenience and improved accessibility, efficiency, and flexibility. Some ways technology has supported this include:

• Wearable devices and remote monitoring tools allow healthcare providers to monitor patients with chronic conditions, collect real-time health data, and intervene promptly when needed.

• Electronic health records (EHRs) grant healthcare professionals seamless access to patient information during virtual consultations, empowering them to make well-informed decisions based on readily available medical history.

• Dedicated telehealth apps and platforms act as a centralised hub for patients to easily schedule appointments, access prescriptions, and receive follow-up care, contributing to a streamlined care experience.

• Automated appointment reminders reduce wait times and improve communication, leading to a more positive patient experience.

Future Outlook

The future of telehealth will include more significant technological advancements using Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality, and Virtual Reality. Wearable devices and sensors for real-time monitoring of health parameters, virtual health assistants, symptom interpretation using AI, remote surgery assistance, and immersive therapy and psychiatry services are some developments to look forward to.

3. Personalised Medicine

Personalised medicine is an emerging revolutionary approach to healthcare that tailors medical treatment according to the unique characteristics of each patient. This is done by understanding the individual's genetic makeup and biomarkers, using data analytics and machine learning algorithms to analyse the different parameters, and developing tailored treatments that are more effective.

This cutting-edge technology can significantly impact patient experience by improving treatment efficacy, minimising adverse effects, and empowering patients to participate actively in healthcare decisions.

Future Outlook

Despite being in its early stages, personalised medicine shows great promise, with advancements such as a deeper understanding of genetics, AI for advanced data analysis, targeted gene and immunotherapies, and the rise of less invasive treatment options. The early identification of genetic predispositions will further strengthen preventive and predictive healthcare models.

Conclusion

Today, digital health technology plays a crucial role in reshaping the entire patient experience. Embracing tools like real-time feedback systems, telehealth, and automation allows healthcare providers to not just adapt to the ever-evolving healthcare landscape but also ensure that patient experience is at the forefront of everything that they do.

Strategies for Success: A Comprehensive Guide to Improving Patient Experience in Healthcare

In today's healthcare landscape, 'patient experience' extends beyond clinical effectiveness and medical expertise — it's about creating a compassionate, safe, and seamless care journey, right from the patient's first contact with the system through to the last. It is the fundamental shift from viewing patients as mere care recipients into active partners in their well-being.

Now, more than ever before, healthcare organisations across the globe are increasingly incorporating practices to improve patient experience and ensure that every patient is seen, heard, and genuinely cared for.

Acknowledging this theme, the NHS has collaborated with trust heads of patient experience to establish a patient experience improvement framework. The framework enables organisations to assess the extent to which patient experience is ingrained in leadership, culture, and operational processes within the institution and identify areas for improvement. 

This blog post focuses on the five elements of the framework, providing actionable strategies that can be implemented to support each component and, ultimately, enhance patient experience.

The Elements of the Patient Experience Improvement Framework

1. Leadership 

Creating a patient-centric culture — one that prioritises a positive patient experience starts at the top. Leaders must champion the cause by leading with empathy and transparency, fostering open communication channels, and actively facilitating a culture that focuses on patient satisfaction. Some actionable steps that organisation leaders can take to support this are:

• Implement a patient experience strategy co-produced with patients and frontline staff, signed off by the board. 

• Establish a Patient Advisory Council comprising patients, their families, and community representatives to gain varied perspectives on healthcare practices, policies, and improvements. 

• Provide ongoing training for staff in communication skills, empathy, and patient-centered care. 

• Develop clear and consistent communication protocols to keep patients and their families in the loop about their care plans and treatment options. 

• Evaluate and optimise internal administrative processes using automation and digital tools to reduce wait times, paperwork, and other time-consuming tasks. 

2. Organisational Culture

Organisational culture is the foundation for delivering exceptional patient experiences and creating an environment where patients feel heard, respected, and supported throughout their healthcare journey. Cultivating this culture requires a strategic and unwavering approach, incorporating one or more of the following actionable steps: 

• Demonstrate organisational commitment by integrating patient-centric values into the mission, vision, and strategic objectives. 

• Create measurable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) specific to patient experience. Regularly track and share these metrics with staff, showcasing how patient satisfaction relates to the organisation's greater goals and success.  

• Develop a recognition program that acknowledges and rewards staff members who consistently contribute to creating a positive care experience for patients. 

• Publicly celebrate examples of exceptional patient care so staff can learn and be inspired, in turn, reinforcing desired behaviours. 

• Foster interdisciplinary collaboration, regular communication, and information sharing among different healthcare departments to ensure coordination and continuity of patient care. 

• Treat challenges and negative feedback as learning opportunities, tweaking processes as you go to drive improvements in care quality.

• Integrate cultural competency into standard operating procedures and policies to ensure a more inclusive healthcare environment where staff recognise and respect the diverse backgrounds and needs of patients. 

• Implement role-playing scenarios during staff training sessions to simulate patient interactions and improve the staff's ability to handle various situations with empathy and sensitivity. 

3. Patient Feedback for Learning and Quality Improvement

Vancouver Coastal Health, a regional health authority, started The Patients Stories Project — a relational initiative that invites patients, families, and caregivers to share their experiences with the dedicated staff who have provided care for them. Here are some examples of what staff and patients had to say:

"Seeing the patient stories, seeing them come back and talk to us, and feeling that impact was so heartening and inspiring. It reminded us that what we do has a very positive impact on people."

 — Catherine Macphail, Clinical Nurse Educator

"Telling the story was cathartic. It took me looking at the whole situation and realising how many people were involved in saving my life and giving me my new life and just how much I appreciate that."

 — Cory, Patient

"Hearing patient stories grounds you in human connection, which is for most of us, the main reason we got into healthcare to start with is to relieve suffering, help people recover, and because we like working with people."

— Allana LeBlanc, Clinical Nurse Specialist 

These heartfelt responses highlight just how important it is to hear feedback from patients and understand their experience  —  not only to drive continuous quality improvement, but also for staff morale. Here are some ways you can support this within your organisation:

• Implement an easy-to-use, digital feedback collection system to gather patient, family, and staff insights. MEG's Feedback Software offers diverse survey templates that can be fully customised and deployed across multiple touch points. Quality teams can use the software's real-time comprehensive patient feedback to analyse trends, allocate resources effectively, and shape future policies and improvement initiatives. 

• Ensure patients are aware of how and where they can share their experiences. Include information on feedback mechanisms in patient education materials such as brochures, posters, and waiting room displays. 

• Provide patients the option to give feedback anonymously. This can encourage more candid responses, particularly for sensitive issues.

• Share aggregated and anonymised feedback results with both staff and patients. Communicate what improvements have been made based on the feedback received, and send follow-up surveys to assess the impact of the changes made. 

• Implement a Complaint Management system to identify and respond to complaints quickly, gain visibility into common issues, and drive continuous improvement. MEG's Complaint Management Software is a digital, user-friendly solution that captures complaint information, has built-in complaint triage, escalation, and quality assurance steps, and connects insights gained with key quality and patient safety processes, policies, and personnel to generate opportunities for further improvement and shared learning.

4. Data Analysis and Triangulation 

While gathering feedback from patients, families, and staff is essential, it only constitutes one facet of a more intricate puzzle. The more critical counterpart involves systematically dissecting the feedback data to transform it from disparate information into a cohesive, actionable resource for continuous improvement. This meticulous approach of triangulating data from diverse sources provides a holistic view, fostering evidence-based decision-making within the organisation. 

The key here is to use a patient feedback tool that consolidates data from diverse channels and touchpoints and analyses it methodically. For example, MEG's Patient Experience Module incorporates advanced analytics tools within its feedback and complaint management features. This dynamic combination dissects feedback, complaints, and other data, offering granular-level insights and the ability to identify trends, systemic issues, and opportunities for continuous improvement. 

You can also link complaints and feedback to patient records, prior incident reports, risk assessments, or the risk register. Additionally, its predictive analytics and trend analysis capabilities empower healthcare professionals to anticipate and proactively address potential issues. Sign up here to see the tools in action. 

5. Reporting and Publication

Reporting and publishing patient experience data within the organisation facilitates transparency and accountability, promoting a culture of openness and dedication to delivering patient-centered care. The data also serves as a diagnostic tool, pinpointing specific areas for improvement through the analysis of trends and opportunities. 

MEG's Patient Experience Software automatically generates board-level or recurring reports for daily, weekly, monthly, or quarterly governance reviews. You can also create management or staff reports ad hoc and customise them based on your requirements. 

Some good practices to bear in mind while producing reports include: 

• Use data visualisation tools such as graphs, charts, and dashboards to present patient experience data. This format is clear, accessible, and easily understood by management and stakeholders.

• Set up regular reporting cycles to ensure consistent and timely distribution of patient experience data. This may include monthly, quarterly, or annual reports to maintain a continuous improvement cycle.

• Implement processes to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the data, including validation checks, data cleaning processes, and regular audits to identify and rectify any discrepancies.

• Adopt strict privacy protocols and anonymise published data to ensure patient confidentiality and compliance with relevant data protection regulations. 

• Ensure published reports are easily accessible across multiple channels to a wide audience, including patients, staff, and the community.

In conclusion, the journey to improving patient experience is an evolving process that extends beyond clinical proficiency. The patient experience improvement framework provides a structured approach, emphasising components integral to healthcare organisations meeting the evolving needs of patients and creating a culture of continuous improvement. 

Media Release: M42 selects MEG Software for Care Quality Management Across its Healthcare Facilities

For Immediate Release

Date: 01.02.24

Abu Dhabi, 1 February 2024: M42, a first-of-its-kind global health-tech powerhouse headquartered in Abu Dhabi, has signed a five-year contract to implement MEG’s healthcare quality management software system across its healthcare facilities in the UAE. This partnership highlights M42’s dedication to maintaining the highest standards of quality and compliance processes across its healthcare facilities, further enhancing patient care and streamlining administrative tasks for staff.

MEG’s integrated digital tools revolutionise healthcare quality management, enabling healthcare providers to connect all the key components for the governance of care quality, compliance and patient safety in one central location. Through interoperable, user-friendly mobile and cloud-based technology, MEG aims to eliminate onerous paperwork for staff, allowing them to continue delivering quality patient care.

MEG’s innovative QMS system will centralise healthcare audit, incident, risk, patient experience and document management processes, replacing paper workflows with real-time reports and action plans for leadership and frontline staff. This transformation is expected to result in significant time and cost savings while providing comprehensive visibility into performance and risk management across the organisation.

MEG’s role in streamlining operations aligns with M42’s vision to employ pioneering technology-driven healthcare solutions to enhance patient care and well-being and provide the highest level of personalised precision and preventative health-tech solutions.

Ashish Koshy, M42’s Group Chief Operating Officer, said: “This partnership underscores our commitment to pushing the boundaries of healthcare technology for the benefit of our patients and the entire community we serve. Our strategy involves leveraging technology not as a mere tool but as a transformative force in co-designing the future of sustainable health. By harnessing MEG's solutions, we will continue to revolutionise the patient experience, enhance quality of care and empower our dedicated staff.”

MEG’s CEO, Kerrill Thornhill, shared his thoughts on the collaboration, saying, “We're delighted to partner with M42, a leading global health-tech company, and share our dedication to improving quality and patient safety. Our collaboration on best-in-class quality management systems will undoubtedly lead to better patient outcomes and drive process improvements across the organisation.”

In addition to this landmark contract, MEG is gearing up to elevate healthcare technology in 2024 with a comprehensive series of platform enhancements. These will include advanced analytics capabilities, state-of-the-art action planning tools, and enhanced hospital system integration capabilities. These advancements underscore MEG's commitment to continual improvement in healthcare quality, patient safety, and compliance technology, solidifying its position as a leader in healthcare innovation.

The official signing of this collaboration took place at Arab Health on 31 January at the M42 stand.

For further information regarding MEG and its services, please visit https://www.megit.com/ or contact;

Name: Edel Churchill

Phone: +353(0)831 96 1848

Email: press@megit.com

–

About MEG

MEG is a digital quality management system for healthcare. Its suite of configurable mobile and cloud-based tools enables providers to engage staff in quality improvement, patient safety and manage compliance with accreditation or regulatory standards.

The easy-to-use modules can be used on any device by frontline workers to collect data from all over an organisation. Capture incidents, audits, risk assessments, and access information anytime right at the point of care.

Management can collate, analyse and act upon real-time information and metrics across multiple sites, consolidating data into a centralised platform.

MEG is currently in operation in more than 20 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Australasia and Latin America with multi-lingual support.

About M42

M42 is a first-of-its-kind global tech-enabled health powerhouse committed to the sustainable future of health. The Abu Dhabi-headquartered company is transforming lives through innovative clinical solutions that are solving the world’s most critical health and diagnostic challenges. By harnessing innovative solutions and unique medical and data-centric technologies, including genomics and AI, M42 is delivering the highest level of personalized, precise, and preventative care to impactfully disrupt the global healthcare ecosystem.

M42 has over 20,000 employees and more than 450 facilities in 26 countries. Established in 2022, following the coming together of G42 Healthcare and Mubadala Health, M42 combines unique medical and data-centric technologies with state-of-the-art facilities to deliver world-class care.

M42 owns and manages an integrated portfolio of health-tech and healthcare service providers including Diaverum, G42 Healthcare, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, Imperial College London Diabetes Centre and Moorfields Eye Hospital Abu Dhabi, among others.

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M42 تتعاقد مع "إم إي جي" لتحسين إدارة جودة الرعاية ضمن مرافقها للرعاية الصحية

أبوظبي، الإمارات العربية المتحدة، xx يناير 2024: أعلنت M42، شركة رائدة هي الأولى من نوعها في مجال الصحة تسعى لإعادة صياغة مستقبل الصحة باستخدام أحدث التقنيات، عن توقيع عقد لمدة خمس سنوات لتطبيق النظام البرمجي لشركة "إم إي جي" MEG لإدارة جودة الرعاية الصحية ضمن جميع مرافقها للرعاية الصحية في دولة الإمارات. وتسلط هذه الشراكة الضوء على التزام M42 بالحفاظ على أرقى معايير جودة الرعاية وكفاءة العمليات ضمن كافة أصولها، بما يعزز من جودة رعاية المرضى ويبسط المهام الإدارية بالنسبة لكوادر العمل.

وتعتبر الأدوات الرقمية المدمجة التي توفرها "إم إي جي" بمثابة نقلة نوعية في منهجية إدارة جودة الرعاية الصحية، إذ تُمكن مقدمي الرعاية من ربط جميع المكونات الرئيسية لحوكمة جودة الرعاية، وتعزيز مستويات الامتثال وسلامة المرضى وكل ذلك ضمن موقع برمجي موحد. ومع توفيرها للتقنيات السحابية المتنقلة وسهلة الاستخدام والقابلة للتشغيل البيني، تهدف "إم إي جي" لإلغاء الأعمال الورقية التي تثقل كاهل الكوادر الإدارية، ليتمكنوا من مواصلة تعزيز جودة الرعاية المقدمة للمرضى.

وسيعمل نظام "إم إي جي" المبتكر لإدارة الجودة على إضفاء طابع مركزي على عمليات تدقيق خدمات الرعاية الصحية والحوادث والمخاطر وتجربة المرضى وعمليات إدارة الملفات، مستبدلاً مسارات العمل الورقية التقليدية بآلية مباشرة لإعداد التقارير وخطط العمل ليستفيد منها قادة المؤسسة وفرق عملها بشكل يعزز من كفاءة العمل بالمجمل. ومن المتوقع لهذا التحول أن يثمر عن تقليص كبير في الوقت والتكلفة، تزامناً مع توفير رؤية واضحة حول الأداء وإدارة المخاطر ضمن شتى مفاصل عمل المؤسسة.

وتنسجم مساعي "إم إي جي" الرامية لتبسيط العمليات مع رؤية M42 لتسخير قدرات حلول الرعاية الصحية المبتكرة المدعومة بالتقنيات المتقدمة لتحسين سبل رعاية المرضى وتعزيز رفاههم، فضلاً عن تقديم أفضل حلول التقنيات الصحية للرعاية الشخصية الدقيقة والوقائية.

وفي هذا السياق، قال أشيش كوشي، رئيس العمليات التشغيلية للمجموعة في شركة M42: " تأتي هذه الشراكة لتمثل دلالة على التزامنا الراسخ بالارتقاء بتقنيات الرعاية الصحية بشكل يعود بالنفع على المرضى وجميع أفراد المجتمعات التي نخدمها. وتنطوي استراتيجية عملنا على تسخير قدرات التكنولوجيا، ليس بوصفها مجرد أداة نعتمد عليها، بل كقوّة دافعة تلعب دوراً رئيسياً في استشراف مستقبل الصحة. وبالاعتماد على حلول ’إم إي جي‘ المتقدمة، نمضي بمساعينا لإحداث نقلة نوعية في تجربة المرضى، وتحسين جودة الرعاية وتمكين فرق عملنا من مزاولة أعمالهم بأسلوب أكثر كفاءة وبساطة".

وحول هذا التعاون، أضاف كيريل ثورنيل، الرئيس التنفيذي لشركة "إم إي جي": "تسعدنا الشراكة مع M42، الشركة الرائدة في التقنيات الصحية، وتتقاسم معنا ذات الالتزام بتحسين جودة رعاية المرضى وتعزيز سلامتهم. ولاشك بأن تعاوننا هذا في إطار أفضل أنظمة إدارة الجودة من فئتها سيقود بالتأكيد نحو تحقيق نتائج أفضل للمرضى، فضلاً عن دفع عجلة تحسين العمليات ضمن كافة مفاصل المؤسسة".

وإضافة لتوقيع هذا العقد الهام، تستعد "إم إي جي" للارتقاء بتقنيات الرعاية الصحية في عام 2024 نحو آفاق أكثر رحابة، مع إطلاق سلسلة من التحسينات الشاملة على المنصة. وستغطي هذه التحديثات قدرات التحليل المتقدمة، وأدوات خطط العمل السباقة، وتحسين إمكانات تكامل أنظمة المستشفيات. وتؤكد هذه التطورات على التزام "إم إي جي" بتحسين جودة الرعاية الصحية باستمرار، وتعزيز سلامة المرضى، وتطوير تقنيات الامتثال، بما يرسخ مكانتها الريادية في ابتكارات الرعاية الصحية.

وأقيم حفل توقيع الاتفاقية الرسمي على هامش معرض ومؤتمر "آراب هيلث" يوم 31 يناير ضمن منصة M42 المشاركة في الحدث.

للمزيد من المعلومات حول "إم إي جي" وخدماتها يرجى زيارة الموقع الإلكتروني: https://www.megit.com/

-انتهى-

حول "M42"

M42 شركة رائدة في مجال الصحة هي الأولى في نوعها تسعى نحو مستقبل مستدام للصحة باستخدام أحدث التقنيات، ومقرها أبوظبي. وهي تسعى لإحداث تحوُّل في حياة الناس بتقديم حلول سريرية مبتكرة لأصعب التحديات التشخيصية والصحية الحرجة في العالم. وبتسخير هذه الحلول المبتكرة والتقنيات الطبية الفريدة المرتكزة على البيانات، ومنها علم الجينوم والذكاء الاصطناعي، وتقدِّم M42 أعلى مستوى من الرعاية المخصَّصة الدقيقة والوقائية لإحداث نقلة نوعية مؤثرة في منظومة الرعاية الصحية العالمية.

لدى M42 أكثر من 20 ألف موظف وأكثر من 450 مرفقًا طبيًا في 26 دولة؛ وقد تأسست عام 2022 بعد اندماج جي42 للرعاية الصحية ومبادلة للرعاية الصحية لتصبحM42 شركة تجمع بين التقنيات الطبية الفريدة المرتكزة على البيانات وأحدث المرافق الطبية لتقديم رعاية عالمية المستوى.

تمتلك M42 وتدير محفظة متكاملة من مقدمي خدمات التقنيات الصحية والرعاية الطبية، ومنها: ديافيرم، وجي42 للرعاية الصحية، وكليفلاند كلينك أبوظبي، ومركز إمبريال كوليدج لندن للسكري، ومستشفى مورفيلدز للعيون أبوظبي، وغيرها.

Patient-Centered Care: Strategies and Tools for Effective Patient Feedback

This blog post is the first in the series "Elevating Patient Experience in 2024" — a comprehensive guide where we discuss the various elements of patient experience, the role of tools like feedback forms, complaint forms, and surveys, strategies organisations can implement to create a holistic and positive care experience, MEG's Patient Experience Module, and more.

In recent years, the emphasis on patient-centered care has significantly increased, with healthcare systems across the globe recognising the pivotal role of patient experience and feedback in shaping the future of care delivery. Initiatives such as the NHS's Patient Safety Strategy and the ACSQHC's (Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care) collection of patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), reflect this transformative shift.

This evolution marks the departure from the conventional healthcare model, where patients were passive recipients of care, toward a more collaborative approach that involves a culture of continuous learning and improvement by actively listening to and learning from patients' experiences.

Real-time patient feedback is emerging as a powerful instrument in supporting this transformation, offering healthcare organisations and providers valuable insights to enhance patient care. This blog post discusses why patient feedback is important, strategies to navigate resistance from staff and patients, and how MEG’s patient feedback tool can be used within your organisation.

Why does patient feedback matter?

A survey conducted by Accenture revealed that two out of three healthcare consumers have had a negative experience with a provider, leading to serious consequences on health outcomes. In fact, 34% of the respondents said they were less likely to seek medical care the next time they needed it. This survey underscores the critical need to make care delivery more streamlined, empathetic, and effective.

Patient engagement stands as a cornerstone in achieving this. Involving patients as active participants in their care journey and encouraging them to share feedback establishes a foundation of trust, promoting open communication and transparency. This, in turn, helps foster a collaborative and positive relationship between healthcare providers and patients.

Recent research indicates that prioritising patients' preferences and feedback leads to better clinical outcomes, reduced healthcare costs, and improved care experience. Apart from this, patient feedback also facilitates:

• Quality improvement: Analysing patient feedback gives healthcare organisations valuable insights into their strengths and weaknesses, allowing them to pinpoint areas needing improvement and implement measures to support it.

• Identification of systemic issues: Examining patterns and trends in patient feedback helps organisations identify recurring problems and broken processes. For instance, if patients consistently report prolonged wait times at the clinic, this can indicate a systemic problem in the appointment scheduling process.

• Innovation in healthcare delivery: Patient feedback is a catalyst for innovation in healthcare delivery. Organisations that actively collect and value patient feedback are more likely to use the insights to implement new technologies, processes, and care models to meet patient needs effectively. For example, suppose a clinic receives feedback regarding the inconvenience of in-person visits for follow-up check-ups. In that case, they can innovate care delivery by introducing virtual appointments that align with patient preferences, improving accessibility and convenience.

Overcoming resistance from staff and patients

While the benefits of patient feedback are evident, implementing a system to collect feedback may encounter resistance from both staff and patients. This can arise due to various factors, including fear of reprisal, time constraints, negative perceptions, and technological barriers. Overcoming this resistance requires a thoughtful approach — one that addresses concerns while emphasising the positive impact on patient care. Here are a few strategies that organisations can implement:

1. Patient Education

• Educating patients on the importance of their feedback plays a crucial role in overcoming resistance and fostering transparency, understanding, and trust. A few ways to go about this include:

• Provide examples of how patient feedback has led to positive changes within the organisation to help them understand the tangible impact their inputs can have on improving care quality.

• Encourage open and honest responses by providing them with the option to provide anonymous feedback, thus ensuring confidentiality.

• Highlight the broader scope of the feedback process, i.e., that it is not solely for complaints but is a powerful tool for capturing positive and constructive insights that can be used to improve or personalise their own care plans.

• Implement a user-friendly and accessible patient feedback platform that encourages active participation and ensures the entire process is quick, easy, and convenient.

2. Staff Engagement and Training

Engaging staff in the design and implementation of the patient feedback system instils a sense of ownership that can go a long way in overcoming resistance. Communicating the purpose of collecting patient feedback and emphasising its role in fostering a patient-centered approach is key.

We recommend leveraging professional development programs and comprehensive training sessions to educate staff on the importance of patient feedback, effective communication skills, best practices, and feedback collection and management methods. Further, ensure staff have access to all the necessary resources and tools, such as a digital patient feedback tool, to streamline the entire process.

Additionally, involving staff in decision-making processes related to feedback collection methods and tools and encouraging open communication promotes a sense of ownership and empowerment.

3. Integrate Feedback Collection into Existing Workflows:

Embedding the feedback collection process into existing workflows ensures that it becomes a natural part of staff's day-to-day activities, minimising the perception of additional burden, and ultimately resistance.

The key here is to design a feedback system that is time-efficient, secure, easy to use, and integrated with the greater quality management system for continuous improvement. You can even establish a feedback loop within the organisation, where staff can see the direct impact of the feedback they collect on improvements in patient care, in turn, reinforcing the value of their contribution.

4. Recognition and Incentives

Recognition and incentives serve as powerful motivators for staff to actively participate in the patient feedback process, as they convey the message that their efforts will be acknowledged and rewarded. It also promotes a positive organisational culture, builds team morale, and strengthens collaboration. Further, knowing their efforts directly contribute to positive patient outcomes and service improvements greatly diminishes resistance.

MEG's Patient Feedback Tool

A good patient feedback tool not only optimises the feedback collection process but also addresses potential resistance from staff by demonstrating the positive impact of collected feedback.

MEG's Patient Feedback Tool, an integral component of the Patient Experience Module, is a digital solution designed to streamline the entire patient feedback process. Featuring a user-friendly interface, customisable survey templates, integration with other quality management systems, multi-channel feedback collection, and automated reminders for pending surveys, this tool empowers both patients and staff to submit valuable feedback within minutes.

Curious to see the tool in action? Sign up for a demo now!

A Comprehensive Guide to PSIRF

In July 2019, NHS England and NHS Improvement launched the NHS Patient Safety Strategy for safer culture, systems, and patients. A part of this strategy was the development of the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF), published in August 2022, with implementation scheduled for the end of 2023. This piece is a comprehensive guide to PSIRF — what it means, who it applies to, what organisations must do, and more.

What is PSIRF?

The Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) sets out the NHS's approach to developing and maintaining effective systems and processes for responding to patient safety incidents to learn and improve patient safety. PSIRF replaces the Serious Incident Framework (SIF) established in 2015.

The PSIRF supports the development and maintenance of an effective patient safety incident response system that integrates four key aims:

Why is PSIRF replacing the Serious Incident Framework?

Shortly after the Serious Incident Framework (SIF) was published, NHS England began receiving feedback from patients, families, and staff regarding their experiences with patient safety incident investigations. They felt that the process was closed and defensive rather than one that supported learning and improvement, as it was intended to do.

Despite providing resources on how to conduct investigations within organisations, there was no visible return on investment in terms of sustainable change and improvement, indicating challenges around the entire process.

In response, NHS England initiated public engagement activities to identify and address the root causes of these problems. The key issues identified were a lack of time and skills among NHS investigators, who often juggled these patient safety incident investigations alongside their regular responsibilities. Investigations were seen as a performance management tool with targets and strict deadlines, overshadowing the goal of positively impacting those affected by serious incidents.

NHS England and NHS Improvement used this information to determine how they could change processes and support their goal of effectively responding to patient safety incidents. This led them to PSIRF.

How is the PSIRF different from the SIF?

The PSIRF fundamentally shifts how the NHS responds to patient safety incidents for learning and improvement.

A key distinction between the Serious Incident Framework (SIF) and the PSIRF is that the latter does not differentiate between "patient safety incidents" and "serious incidents". By eliminating the "serious incidents" classification and its associated threshold, the PSIRF represents a significant change in how the NHS responds to patient safety incidents as a whole, and is a major step towards implementing comprehensive safety management systems across all organisations.

Another differentiator is that PSIRF is not an investigation framework that prescribes what to investigate. Instead, it advocates a co-ordinated and data-driven approach to patient safety incident response, focusing on compassionate engagement with those affected.

Under PSIRF, organisations are required to develop a thorough understanding of their patient safety incident profile, ongoing safety actions, and established improvement programmes.

Through the patient safety incident response planning exercise that involves providers and key stakeholders, the organisation can identify its capacity to respond to incidents, considering factors such as the availability of trained investigators, their time constraints, and the variety of response methods at their disposal. They can then determine an appropriate and proportionate response in the event of an incident.

In a nutshell, the PSIRF focuses on:

• Improving the experience of those affected by an incident, be it the organisation's staff, patients, or their families.

• Transitioning towards a considerate approach where organisations assess patient safety incidents to identify the most significant learning opportunities, understand ongoing improvement efforts, and only then determine an appropriate response.

• Leveraging a broader, more effective range of methods to support insight gathering and learning rather than methods that assume simplistic, linear identification of a single cause.

• Establishing effective governance structures and oversight processes to respond to patient safety incidents, through the collaborative efforts of all healthcare organisations that deliver and oversee NHS-funded care.

Who does the PSIRF apply to?

The PSIRF is a contractual requirement under the NHS Standard Contract and is mandatory for services provided under that contract, including acute, ambulance, mental health, community healthcare provider, maternity, and all specialised services.

Further, organisations that provide NHS-funded secondary care under the NHS Standard Contract but are not NHS trusts or foundation trusts are required to adopt the PSIRF for all aspects of NHS-funded care.

Primary care providers may also wish to adopt PSIRF, but it is not a mandatory requirement at this stage. Those wanting to use PSIRF within their organisation must work with their integrated care board (ICB).

What must organisations do?

Organisations are required to apply the PSIRF in the development and maintenance of the following:

1) Patient Safety Incident Response Policy: This defines the organisation's approach to responding to and learning from patient safety incidents for improvement. It includes information about the current systems, processes, and governance processes, engagement strategies for those affected by a patient safety incident, and how learning responses will be translated into improvement work across the organisation. You can access the national policy template here.

2) Patient Safety Incident Response Plan: Based on the organisation's patient safety incident profile, ongoing improvement priorities, available resources, and the priorities of all stakeholders, this document should specify the methods the organisation intends to use to maximise learning and improvement and how these will be applied to different patient safety incidents. You can access the national plan template here.

Both documents must align with the organisation's wider approach to safety improvement and should be published on the organisation’s website.

How can organisations use the PSIRF?

As mentioned in the previous section, organisations must apply the PSIRF in developing and maintaining the Patient Safety Incident Response Policy and Plan. To help them with this, NHS England has put together the following documents:

• A comprehensive preparation guide to implement the framework and templates for the local patient safety incident response policy and plan

• Guidance on engaging and involving patients, families, and staff following a patient safety incident

• Response planning and tools, guides, and report templates

• Patient Safety Incident Response Standards, including training requirements

• The roles and responsibilities of those overseeing incident response

You can find these resources here.

What is the PSIRF Learning Response Toolkit?

When working with early adopters, the team at NHS England found that there needed to be a shared understanding of a patient safety incident investigation. So, to create more awareness, they put together the PSIRF toolkit that contains a range of system-based approaches and national tools that incorporate the SEIPS (Systems Engineering Initiative for Patient Safety).

Organisations are encouraged to use the toolkit to explore the contributory factors to a patient safety incident or cluster of incidents and to inform improvement. Broadly, the PSIRF toolkit contains:

• Preparation Tools: Typically done in the early stage of the learning response, this includes an information gathering log, stakeholder maps, and a template to help define the Terms of Reference (ToR) for an investigation.

• Learning response methods: This includes the After Action Review, Multidisciplinary Review, Swarm Huddle, and the patient safety incident investigation overview.

• Everyday work guides: Designed to support the exploration of how care is delivered day-to-day in the real world, this includes staff guidance on conducting empathetic, supportive interviews during learning responses, link analysis, and walkthrough analysis.

• Additional tools: Some other tools available in the PSIRF toolkit are a thematic review tool, horizon scanning tool, timeline mapping, work system scan, SHARE debrief tool, and a safety action development guide to help providers identify areas of risk, actions to reduce them, and how to take the learning and translate it into meaningful action.

You can find these resources here.

What do early adopters of the PSIRF have to say?

NHS England interviewed some of the early adopters of the PSIRF within their organisation to understand their experience with the new framework and their advice to providers who are now implementing PSIRF. Here's what some of them had to say:

Lucy Winstanley, Head of Patient Safety and Quality, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

According to Lucy, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust identified an opportunity for change with the PSIRF while recognising the limitations of the Serious Incident Framework. She attributes the successful implementation of PSIRF to the organisation's board, which demonstrated an early commitment, embraced change, and remained open to collective learning.

That said, the organisation faced the challenge of spending considerable time on quantitative investigations that weren't high quality. To overcome this, they recruited specialised patient safety incident investigators who brought a wealth of experience and a different approach, significantly improving staff and patient engagement in the process. This strategic move ensured better support, enhancing the overall effectiveness of the system.

Lucy's advice to those transitioning to the PSIRF:

"You have to approach it as a collective with the freedom to know that you are making a change and doing it for the right reason. Flexibility and appetite for change have to be the drivers here because it is very different from what you know already — there will be questions and grey areas. Still, as a collective, if you're confident of your approach and keep patients at the heart of it all, it will be successful."

Megan Pontin, Patient Safety Incident Investigator, West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

Megan believes the PSIRF significantly differs from the Serious Incident Framework in many ways. Specifically, she finds involving patients, families, and staff right at the beginning of an investigation a game-changer.

Here's what Megan wants providers to bear in mind during the transition:

"Remember that this is quite a long journey, and you can't set it all out at the start. We all focus on doing the investigations correctly and learning from them. But the part about then transferring that into an improvement activity is perhaps the part that none of us had a strong framework on before. The PSIRF now allows us to do that, and that's where we need to focus."

Saranna Burges, Director for Patent Safety and Quality, Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust

According to Saranna, the PSIRF has empowered clinical staff to participate actively in every phase of the incident investigation process — from the early screening or the review of the incident to the debriefing and decision-making. This involvement has fostered a sense of ownership and engagement among them, offering valuable insights into the range of incidents within the trust and their effects on patients and caregivers.

Saranna's advice for mental trusts who are now implementing the PSIRF is:

"Get it right from the start what you're looking to do. You're looking to target areas where you have the most care and treatment concerns, not areas where you have the most incidents. Although that has to feature in your decision-making, it's the areas of care and treatment you must focus on. Be prepared for the fact that it won't reduce the activity levels. You're just going to be doing something different."

Lisa Falconer, Head of Clinical Quality and Patient Safety, NHS Derby and Derbyshire ICB

Lisa believes that the adoption of the PSIRF has resulted in trusts becoming more targeted in their approach to improvement plans. They now aim to embed and sustain these plans within their organisation, as opposed to merely identifying actions and documenting them in an investigation report, never to be revisited.

Lisa's advice to ICB leads is:

"The key is to get providers together and work alongside them every step of the way, guiding and supporting them by ensuring their plans are fit for purpose. Make sure to do every part of the journey; make sure you do all of it to get the most out of the PSIRF."

How can MEG help?

MEG is an intuitive, cloud-based digital quality management system that supports engagement in care quality, safety, and compliance initiatives through incident and complaint activity tracking, effective policy and document management, and real-time reporting and analytics.

As an LFPSE-compliant and PSIRF-compatible vendor, MEG provides customisable workflows and tools for quality assurance and incident management.

Want to know more about how MEG can help you implement the PSIRF within your organisation? Get it touch!