Dataset Information

Compassionate Conversations.

ABSTRACT: Staff engagement is much more than just a bonus in any organisation. CQC data shows that it is very clearly linked to positive results in both patient and staff outcomes (fewer complaints, improved safety, reduced sickness, fewer accidents, and more as per Michael West). Staff engagement may seem nebulous but is in fact measured routinely annually in the National Staff Survey. The problem is that often Trust Boards with poor Staff Survey results may struggle to increase staff engagement as staff see management initiatives as 'management fads' or 'tick-box exercises' purely for targets, not their own benefit. Compassionate Conversations are a ground-level initiative focused primarily on supporting and motivating individual staff as the primary focus. This allows the benefits to patients and in Human Resources to be an unspoken anticipated benefit. They are led by a Psychologist and Consultant in a coaching supportive atmosphere in an open or selected group. The Conversations have been rated 9/10 or higher by 64% of participants, while 75% of all participants voluntarily provided feedback. Feedback initially was that Conversations were too clinically-focused and further Conversations were more wide-ranging in topic and included departmental roadshows.

SUBMITTER: Gardner S

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4645938 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Compassionate Conversations.

Gardner Sharryn S Bray Dominic D

BMJ quality improvement reports 20140902 1

Staff engagement is much more than just a bonus in any organisation. CQC data shows that it is very clearly linked to positive results in both patient and staff outcomes (fewer complaints, improved safety, reduced sickness, fewer accidents, and more as per Michael West). Staff engagement may seem nebulous but is in fact measured routinely annually in the National Staff Survey. The problem is that often Trust Boards with poor Staff Survey results may struggle to increase staff engagement as staff ...[more]

PMID: 26734308

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundThe acceleration of technology-based primary care during the COVID-19 pandemic outpaced the ability to understand whether and how it impacts care delivery and outcomes. As technology-based care continues to evolve, focusing on the core construct of compassion in a primary care context will help ensure high-quality patient care and increased patient autonomy and satisfaction. The ability to successfully operationalize the use of technology in patient-clinician interactions hinges on understanding not only how compassionate care is experienced in this context but also how clinicians can create it.ObjectiveThe objectives of this study were to understand whether and how compassionate behaviors are experienced in technology-based primary care interactions and identify the individual and contextual drivers that influence whether and how these behaviors occur.MethodsWe conducted a series of qualitative one-on-one interviews with primary care physicians, nurses, and patients. Qualitative data were initially analyzed using an inductive thematic analysis approach to identify preliminary themes for each participant group independently. We then looked across participant groups to identify areas of alignment and distinction. Descriptions of key behaviors that participants identified as elements of a compassionate interaction and descriptions of key drivers of these behaviors were inductively coded and defined at this stage.ResultsA total of 74 interviews were conducted with 40 patients, 20 nurses, and 14 primary care physicians. Key behaviors that amplified the experience of compassion included asking the patient's modality preference, using video to establish technology-based presence, sharing the screen, and practicing effective communication. Participants' knowledge or skills as well as their beliefs and emotions influenced whether or not these behaviors occurred. Contextual elements beyond participants' control influenced technology-based interactions, including resource access, funding structures, culture, regulatory standards, work structure, societal influence, and patient characteristics and needs. A high-yield, evidence-based approach to address the identified drivers of compassion-focused clinician behavior includes a combination of education, training, and enablement.ConclusionsMuch of the patient experience is influenced by clinician behavior; however, clinicians need a supportive system and adequate supports to evolve new ways of working to create the experience of compassionate care. The current state of technology-based care operationalization has led to widespread burnout, societal pressure, and shifting expectations of both clinicians and the health system more broadly, threatening the ability to deliver compassionate care. For clinicians to exhibit compassionate behaviors, they need more than just adequate supports; they also need to receive compassion from and experience the humanity of their patients.

Project description:BackgroundPatients and clinicians endorse the importance of compassionate healthcare but patients report gaps between its perceived importance and its demonstration. Empathy and compassion have been associated with quality of life and significant health outcomes but these characteristics are not optimally measured or used for performance and organizational improvement.ObjectiveTo address these gaps, we conducted a study with the objective of evaluating the properties of the 12-item Schwartz Center Compassionate Care Scale® using psychometric analysis and cognitive debriefing.MethodsNon-hospitalized patients with multiple chronic conditions were sampled using an on-line platform. Classical test theory and Rasch measurement theory were used to evaluate psychometric properties of the scale. Structured questions elicited cognitive responses regarding clarity of each item.ResultsClassical test theory analysis confirmed that the 12-item Schwartz Center Compassionate Care Scale is a unidimensional scale with excellent internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Patients' ratings of compassionate behaviors using the Schwartz Center Compassionate Care Scale correlated significantly with a related instrument designed to measure empathy, demonstrating convergent validity. Rasch measurement theory showed that reducing the number of response options on 3 items in the scale would improve respondents' discrimination between responses on these items. Although person-item threshold distribution analysis showed that patients may wish to rate compassionate care at levels both higher and lower than the scale permits, items could be ordered on an interval scale from low to high levels of compassionate care.ConclusionsThe current 12-item Schwartz Center Compassionate Care Scale demonstrates excellent psychometric properties by Classical Test Theory and Rasch measurement theory. The 12-item Schwartz Center Compassionate Care Scale adds questions related to understanding and discussing emotional, contextual issues and the needs of the patient and family. Easily completed on-line, it could be used for work-place based assessment and feedback to clinicians and performance or quality improvement.

Project description:BackgroundMedication cost conversations occur less frequently than patients prefer, and it is unclear whether patients have positive experiences with them when they do occur.ObjectiveTo describe patients' experiences discussing their medication costs with their health care team.DesignCross-sectional survey.SettingNationally representative survey fielded in the United States in 2022 (response rate = 48.5%).Patients1020 adults over age 65.MeasurementsPrimary measures were adapted from Clinician and Group Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers Survey visit survey v4.0 and captured patients' experiences of medication cost conversations. Additional measures captured patients' interest in future cost conversations, the type of clinicians with whom they would be comfortable discussing costs, and sociodemographic characteristics.ResultsAmong 1020 respondents who discussed medication prices with their health care team, 39.3% were 75 or older and 78.6% were non-Hispanic White. Forty-three percent of respondents indicated that their prior medication cost conversation was not easy to understand; 3% indicated their health care team was not respectful and 26% indicated their health care team was somewhat respectful during their last conversation; 48% indicated that there was not enough time. Those reporting that their prior discussion was not easy to understand or that their clinician was not definitely respectful were less likely to be interested in future discussions. Only 6% and 10% of respondents indicated being comfortable discussing medication prices with financial counselors or social workers, respectively. Few differences in responses were observed by survey participant characteristics.LimitationsThis cross-sectional survey of prior experiences may be subject to recall bias.ConclusionAmong older adults who engaged in prior medication cost conversations, many report that these conversations are not easy to understand and that almost one-third of clinicians were somewhat or not respectful. Efforts to increase the frequency of medication cost conversations should consider parallel interventions to ensure the discussions are effective at informing prescribing decisions and reducing cost-related medication nonadherence.

Dataset Information

Compassionate Conversations.

Publications

Compassionate Conversations.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets