The Emperor Has No Ganey
Authors: Bonnie L. Bermas
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2022)

Ideas and OpinionsApril 2022The Emperor Has No GaneyBonnie L. Bermas, MDBonnie L. Bermas, MDDivision of Rheumatic Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas (B.L.B.).Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M21-4075 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Academic medical centers rely on patient satisfaction surveys as a proxy measurement of the patient experience. Familiar assessments include the Press Ganey survey and the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey (1). Physician and hospital reimbursements are linked to these survey results. In 2015 alone, 30% of the $1.4 billion paid by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for performance were based on HCAHPS scores (2). The focus of these surveys is the patient's perceptions of their overall clinical experience, not quality outcomes. Factors outside of a physician's control, such as ease of parking, wait ...References1. Presson AP, Zhang C, Abtahi AM, et al. Psychometric properties of the Press Ganey® Outpatient Medical Practice Survey. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2017;15:32. [PMID: 28183312] doi:10.1186/s12955-017-0610-3 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar2. Elliott MN, Beckett MK, Lehrman WG, et al. Understanding the role played by Medicare's patient experience points system in hospital reimbursement. Health Aff (Millwood). 2016;35:1673-80. [PMID: 27605650] doi:10.1377/hlthaff.2015.0691 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. DeLoughery EP. Physician race and specialty influence Press Ganey survey results. Neth J Med. 2019;77:366-369. [PMID: 31880269] MedlineGoogle Scholar4. Rogo-Gupta LJ, Haunschild C, Altamirano J, et al. Physician gender is associated with Press Ganey patient satisfaction scores in outpatient gynecology. Womens Health Issues. 2018;28:281-285. [PMID: 29429946] doi:10.1016/j.whi.2018.01.001 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Compton J, Glass N, Fowler T. Evidence of selection bias and non-response bias in patient satisfaction surveys. Iowa Orthop J. 2019;39:195-201. [PMID: 31413694] MedlineGoogle Scholar6. Kohring JM, Pelt CE, Anderson MB, et al. Press Ganey Outpatient Medical Practice Survey scores do not correlate with patient-reported outcomes after primary joint arthroplasty. J Arthroplasty. 2018;33:2417-2422. [PMID: 29691167] doi:10.1016/j.arth.2018.03.044 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar7. Zgierska A, Rabago D, Miller MM. Impact of patient satisfaction ratings on physicians and clinical care. Patient Prefer Adherence. 2014;8:437-46. [PMID: 24729691] doi:10.2147/PPA.S59077 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar8. Takeshita J, Wang S, Loren AW, et al. Association of racial/ethnic and gender concordance between patients and physicians with patient experience ratings. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3:e2024583. [PMID: 33165609] doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.24583 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar9. Schneider BJ, Ehsanian R, Schmidt A, et al. The effect of patient satisfaction scores on physician job satisfaction and burnout. Futur Sci OA. 2020;7:FSO657. [PMID: 33437508] doi:10.2144/fsoa-2020-0136 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar10. Riiskjær E, Ammentorp J, Kofoed PE. The value of open-ended questions in surveys on patient experience: number of comments and perceived usefulness from a hospital perspective. Int J Qual Health Care. 2012;24:509-16. [PMID: 22833616] doi:10.1093/intqhc/mzs039 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Division of Rheumatic Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas (B.L.B.).Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M21-4075.Corresponding Author: Bonnie L. Bermas, MD, Division of Rheumatic Diseases, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 2001 Inwood Road, Dallas, TX 75390-8872; e-mail, Bonnie.[email protected]edu.Author Contributions: Conception and design: B.L. Bermas.Analysis and interpretation of the data: B.L. Bermas.Drafting of the article: B.L. Bermas.Critical revision for important intellectual content: B.L. Bermas.Collection and assembly of data: B.L. Bermas.Final approval of the article: B.L. Bermas.This article was published at Annals.org on 15 February 2022. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoThe Emperor Has No Ganey Bonnie L. Bermas The Emperor Has No Ganey Thomas H. Lee Metrics Cited byThe Emperor Has No GaneyThomas H. Lee, MD, MSC April 2022Volume 175, Issue 4Page: 592-593KeywordsHealth care qualityPatient satisfactionPerceptionPsychological stressQuestionnairesRacial and ethnic issuesSub-specialty care ePublished: 15 February 2022 Issue Published: April 2022 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2022 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...