Research reveals drivers of patient satisfaction and frustrations
How critical is the staff to the patient experience? Consider: One out of three patients have switched doctors due to unfriendly staff, according to a new survey from practice technology company ModMed.
The survey, conducted by the research firm OnePoll, asked 2,000 patients about their experience with a doctor’s office and found that patients will seek out a new doctor that will make a better fit, with factors such as timeliness, the use of modern technology, and friendliness of the staff contributing to the overall experience.
“Staff have a large impact on the patient experience,” says Andrew Miller, MD, Associates in Ophthalmology, Livingston, NJ. “They are the first and last impression that a patient gets from the practice. Patients often tell me that they consider how the staff treats patients as a reflection of the doctors.”
Dr. Miller notes that staff can improve the patient experience by treating all patients with kindness and empathy. “We want the staff to show the patients how much we care about them and how excited we are to help them with their needs,” he says.
Patients keeping a ‘scorecard’
According to the survey, 73% of patients are somewhat likely or very likely to keep a “mental scorecard” of all the things they like and dislike about a new doctor’s office. Doctors’ offices are given, on average, four chances before a patient decides to find a new doctor.
Regarding staff, 75% considered the friendliness of staff to be somewhat important or very important in the waiting room. In addition, 65% report the friendliness of staff is important when considering whether to see the same doctor as before.
The benefits of technology
The survey provides insights into patients’ perspectives on a practice’s website, online reviews, waiting room, staff, payments process, follow-up communications, and more. It also inquired about which digital tools patients prefer to use before, during, and after a medical visit.
For example, 60% of patients are somewhat likely or very likely to select one doctor over another if able to make appointments online. And 61% place importance on how easy it is to make payments when considering whether to continue seeing a doctor.
In addition to making transactions easier, digital tools can impact the perception of quality of care: For example, 89% of respondents strongly agree or somewhat agree that the office staff seems more engaged since introducing new technology at the office. Digital tools can also help make staff more productive.
“Taking a digital-first approach with patients could free up staff to focus more on non-administrative tasks, giving them more time to focus on patients and potentially boosting their own job satisfaction,” says Daniel Cane, chief executive officer at ModMed.
According to the survey, most patients agree that it’s somewhat frustrating or very frustrating when they call for an appointment and have to leave a voicemail and wait to be called back. In fact, a combined 48% prefer to email, text, or use an online portal over a phone call to make appointments. In addition, 67% are much more likely or somewhat more likely to use chat over calling to make an appointment or request lab results. And 59% of those surveyed report frustration in playing phone tag with the staff.
“The more that the staff is accessible to patients the better,” says Jonathan Feistmann, MD, NYC Retina in New York. “Communication is key for customer service. In addition to medical care, communication, when done well, is what makes people feel well taken care of by staff and doctors.”
In the exam room, 46% prefer their doctor use a tablet to review patient history, and 54% strongly agree that their doctor seems more attentive with the introduction of new technology.
Yet, even with these digital options, human interaction remains important. For example, when deciding to see the same doctor, 67% of patients polled believe how personable and engaged a doctor is very important or somewhat important.
For more information, download the report, ModMed 2022 Patient Experience Report: What Patients Really Think, which is available at modmed.com . OP
Letter To the Editor:
Well done on an informative article in the July issue Opening Lines section titled, “A call for prior authorization reform.” The author captured the importance of patients’ access to insured and timely cataract surgery.
As I’m sure your readers are aware, dry eye disease affects some 30 million Americans, and a primary symptom is intermittent blurry vision, which makes dry eye a vision concern as well as a medical need.
In recent years, the industry has seen many clinical advancements in dry eye treatments, including clarity as to the need for heat and mechanical removal of obstructions causing meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), a significant underlying contributor to DED symptoms. Unfortunately, none of this excellent advancement has resulted in payors covering these improvements.
Currently, little to no coverage or reimbursement exists for in-office MGD treatment with heat and expression devices. To put that into perspective, research shows that only 5% of patients receive heat and expression treatments, while 86% may need it. Inadequate payment and lack of payor coverage only further reduces the patient’s access to essential care.
Sight Sciences’ commitment to advocating for appropriate payor coverage of MGD treatment systems backed by clinical data published in peer-reviewed literature is unwavering. We will continue to advocate for appropriate coverage and reimbursement for such innovation and assist our customers with navigating the barriers to medically necessary and reasonable care that payors have in place. Sight Sciences’ “Fair Access” campaign (mytearcare.com/fair-access ) highlights disparities in insured access and fair reimbursement for MGD heat and expression treatment. We want to maximize available treatment options for patients and tackle this significant unmet need in MGD care.
We welcome providers to learn more about our vision for improving patient insured access and fair provider reimbursement for heat and expression procedures. OP
Jim Sluck
Vice President, Ocular Surface Marketing
Sight Sciences, Inc.
In Brief
AcuFocus Inc., a privately held ophthalmic medical device company, announced FDA approval for its IC-8 Apthera IOL for the treatment of cataracts. The Apthera IOL is the first non-toric extended depth-of-focus IOL approved for the 82% of cataract patients who have as much as 1.5 D of corneal astigmatism. The Apthera extended depth-of-focus IOL uses proprietary small aperture technology to filter out peripheral defocused light, allowing only focused light to reach the retina to provide distance vision as well as clear intermediate and near vision. The company plans to begin with a limited commercial release of the Apthera IOL in the United States in fall 2022.
Lenstec’s SBL-3 multifocal IOL for cataract surgery received FDA approval. This next-generation asymmetric multifocal refractive IOL provides patients with near, intermediate and distance vision. Its patented design allows for improved contrast sensitivity and minimized halo and glare, the company says.
DORC International obtained 510(k) market clearance for EVA NEXUS, the first surgical system approved for subretinal injection. EVA NEXUS features SMART IOP, a highly responsive infusion mode enabling surgeons to work at lower infusion pressures and maintain a stable anterior and posterior chamber, a trocar cannula system with HI-FLOW infusion line, and EVA INICIO, a microinjection system designed for precise, ± 1psi control of sub 1ml injections with accompanying cannulas for subretinal injection.
Apellis Pharmaceuticals announced the FDA accepted and granted Priority Review designation for the intravitreal pegcetacoplan new drug application (NDA). Pegcetacoplan is an investigational, targeted C3 therapy for the treatment of geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to AMD. The NDA submission is based on results from the Phase 3 DERBY and OAKS studies at 12 and 18 months and the Phase 2 FILLY study at 12 months. In the studies, treatment with both monthly and every-other-month pegcetacoplan resulted in a clinically meaningful reduction of GA lesion growth across more than 1,500 patients and demonstrated a favorable safety profile.
Bausch + Lomb and Novaliq GmbH announced the submission of an NDA for NOV03 (perfluorohexyloctane), an investigational treatment with a proposed indication of treating the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease (DED) associated with meibomian gland dysfunction. If approved by the FDA, NOV03 will be the first available therapy indicated to address the signs and symptoms for this patient population.
Novartis acquired Kedalion Therapeutics and its AcuStream technology, a preservative-free, electromechanical topical ocular delivery device that may have the potential to facilitate precise dosing and accurate delivery of certain topical ophthalmic medications to the eye. Novartis intends to develop the AcuStream technology for potential use with its existing and future front-of-eye therapies, which could include Xiidra (lifitegrast ophthalmic solution) 5% for the treatment of DED.
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