Biannual Patient Satisfaction Surveys - "aiding in a movement to help them improve the services they receive"

Since 2004, the Philadelphia Department of Public Health has been conducting biannual patient satisfaction surveys at each of its eight city health centers. The surveying responsibility falls on myself and the other Philadelphia Health Corps Patient Advocates who serve throughout the city. Collectively, we are responsible for surveying 400 patients at each of the centers, for a grand total of 3200 surveys. The goal of the surveys is to evaluate the state of the centers and, moving forward, improve them in any and all ways possible.

When a thick stack of surveys was dropped off at our clinic back in December I was less than thrilled about the prospect of completing them, in addition to normal patient advocate duties. The surveys can be tiresome, as they are upwards of 50 questions that must be read aloud to patients. Selfishly, I did not want to stray from my usual routine at the clinic. Over the past few weeks though, as I begin to think less about myself and more about my new community here in Philadelphia, my opinion of the surveys has begun to change.

“I’ve been waiting here for hours…” patients often groan in exhaustion when I ask about their wait time. “It’s like they think I don’t have anything better to do!” This sentiment highlights the high volume of patients seen by the health centers. “Weekend hours? That would be wonderful!” others exclaim after hearing questions regarding clinic accessibility. Other patients depart from the questions of the survey and begin to open up about other aspects of their lives. One woman spoke to me about her inability to find work and how she often looks to a higher power for assistance. “I want to help out in any way I can,” she said, “with the elderly.” The woman was in her late sixties.

I have come to see that the surveys are much more than just a tool to collect data. They are an outlet for patients that can break up a lengthy day at the clinic. They provide patients with a voice, a chance to be heard and evoke change in their healthcare experience. While my primary role as a patient advocate, which is to enroll uninsured patients in programs to receive much needed free medication, is extremely important, I feel it is equally important to be able to simply sit with patients and listen. After finally prying myself from the comfort of my not so comfortable chair in the Patient Assistance office, I find myself gaining a better understanding of the patient experience at the city health centers. I am having conversations with patients that I never thought I would have and aiding in a movement to help them improve the services they receive.
 

This post was written by PHC member Jillian Clark.
Jillian serves at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health - Ambulatory Health Services as a Patient Assistance Program Advocate.