The guarantee of unique and successful experiences of patients and their families in hospitals is a priority for healthcare providers and administrators (Cliff, 2012). In their report, Balik, Conway, Zipperer, and Watson (2011) discuss specific drivers of the exceptional patients’ experience that should be taken into account and addressed in each healthcare facility. As a result of conducting the study, the researchers have identified leadership, reliable and evidence-based care, respectful partnerships, and staff’s ‘minds’ as important drivers to provide high-quality and efficient care (Balik et al., 2011).
The personal real-life experience that can be discussed as related to the information from the report is associated with the practice in the local hospital that has succeeded in improving the safety and quality of patient care. To increase the quality of the provided care and focus on patients’ experiences, the hospital’s authorities revised the policy to regulate healthcare providers’ interactions with patients and their families, and they also improved teamwork procedures to focus on applying evidence to practice. As a result, nurses became able to collect the information regarding practices of equipping patient rooms and discuss it during meetings. Besides, team leaders worked on implementing patient safety technologies and improvement of patient rooms’ equipment concerning the collected evidence.
It is possible to state that this example of the real-life experience correlates with the information presented in the article because the hospital’s authorities have focused on implementing the specific policy to improve the patients’ experience, and this step is directly related to leadership. Besides, the authorities have concentrated on principles of implementing evidence-based practice in the hospital.
Furthermore, it is possible to speak about providing opportunities to deliver reliable care because of using the improved technologies. Finally, the aspect of involving the staff and developing their relationships is also addressed concerning the teamwork. It is possible to state that the partnership of nurses and patients can also be discussed as developing as a result of improvements in policies and procedures.
Even though not all of the proposed drivers of the improved patient and family’s experiences can be applied by officials simultaneously to increase the quality and safety of the provided care, the aspects discussed by Balik et al. (2011) are appropriate to change a situation in hospitals and achieve positive outcomes. The focus on leadership can guarantee that the patient care will be controlled and monitored effectively (Aboumatar, Chang, Al Danaf, Shaear, & Namuyinga, 2015). The reference to employees’ ‘hearts and minds’, as it is proposed by the researchers, is also important to ensure that nurses and healthcare providers have the commitment to their work and responsibilities and that they are ready to cooperate to improve patients’ experiences (Balik et al., 2011).
It is also important to note that the respectful partnership between healthcare providers and patients or their families is even the more significant aspect. The reason is that patients’ and families’ perceptions of care in a hospital depend on their relationships with the personnel, psychological comfort, and understanding that their opinions are taken into account. Also, the discussed drivers seem to be reasonable while paying attention to the role of reliable and evidence-based care because these particular aspects allow for speaking about the quality of services and the level of patients’ and families’ satisfaction.
References
Aboumatar, H. J., Chang, B. H., Al Danaf, J., Shaear, M., & Namuyinga, R. (2015). Promising practices for achieving patient-centered hospital care. Medical Care, 53(9), 758-767.
Balik, B., Conway, J., Zipperer, L., & Watson, J. (2011). Achieving an exceptional patient and family experience of inpatient hospital care. Cambridge, MA: Institute for Healthcare Improvement.
Cliff, B. (2012). The evolution of patient-centered care. Journal of Healthcare Management, 57(2), 86-92.