Session Information
Date: Saturday, November 16, 2019
Session Title: Quality Improvement Case and Research Report
Session Time: 11:15am-12:45pm
Location: Research Hub - Kiosk 8
Disclosures: Connie Jiang, MD: Nothing to disclose
Objective: To determine if patient-centered goals increase patient satisfaction
Design: This study was implemented using the PDSA – Plan, Do, Study, Act – cycle model for improvement.
Setting: A 60 bed inpatient rehabilitation facility comprised of brain injury, stroke, spinal cord injury, oncology, and general rehabilitation services.
Participants: All patients cognitively able to participate in goal setting.
Interventions: Data were collected over a period of 12 weeks: 4 weeks without intervention and 8 weeks with intervention. During the 8 weeks of intervention, the physicians worked with the patient to identify one specific overarching goal that he/she wanted to work on during his/her rehabilitation stay. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, recreational therapy, and nursing then identified sub-goals within their specialty to work towards the overarching goal.
Main Outcome Measures: At time of discharge, each patient completed a short verbal survey. Main outcome measures included overall patient satisfaction (from 1 for “very poor” to 5 for “very good”), how well the patient felt the goal was addressed, and the types of goals set by patients.
Results: There were 113 patients total during the intervention period. Of those, 86 patients were cognitively appropriate to participate in the study; 51 patients both set goals and completed the discharge survey. The mean score for overall patient satisfaction and how well the patient felt the goal was addressed without goal setting was 4.74 and 4.72, respectively. With goal setting the mean scores were 4.75 and 4.71, respectively. The most common pre-intervention goals involved ambulating, getting better, and going home. With patient-centered goals, goals commonly involved family, community, and hobbies.
Conclusions: Prior to the intervention, patient satisfaction was high without patient-centered goal setting. Patient-centered goals did not provide a statistically significant increase in patient satisfaction scores at this institution. However, most patients reported that they enjoyed setting specific goals and that they felt more motivated.
Level of Evidence: Level V
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
Jiang C, Desmond S, Thompson R, Bavishi S. Use of Patient-centered Goals to Increase Patient Satisfaction: A Quality Improvement Project [abstract]. PM R. 2019; 11(S2)(suppl 2). https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/use-of-patient-centered-goals-to-increase-patient-satisfaction-a-quality-improvement-project/. Accessed May 18, 2025.« Back to AAPM&R Annual Assembly 2019
PM&R Meeting Abstracts - https://pmrjabstracts.org/abstract/use-of-patient-centered-goals-to-increase-patient-satisfaction-a-quality-improvement-project/