At St. Luke's Hospital, our objective is to provide quality service, close to your home.  From offering a courteous reception in the hospital lobby, to furnishing a pleasant hospital setting, to delivering prompt and knowledgeable answers to your health care questions, we strive to ensure a high level of patient satisfaction.  To do so, however, we need your help.

"We are working hard to create an environment for healing and wellness," says St. Luke's Director of Clinical Effectiveness Jan Boller.  "Achieving that goal requires getting feedback from our patients about their experiences at St. Luke's.  It's very important that we hear from people about various aspects of their care so we can address areas that need improvement and maintain our reputation for excellence.  Positive comments are as important as criticisms.  We need to know what we're doing right, too."

St. Luke's sends out patient satisfaction surveys every month to most patients who have been in the hospital or who have been seen in the Emergency Room.  The surveys cover all aspects of patient care, such as keeping patients and families informed about their care, providing comfort, the quality of food service, the clarity of explanations about tests and treatments, the skill of physicians and staff providing care, even the cleanliness of the facility.

"These patient surveys - which take only a few minutes to complete - provide valuable feedback to let us know how we're doing," Boller explains.  "Our patients' comments are essential."

Results from patient surveys are incorporated into the hospital's service improvement efforts.  An ongoing Service Excellence Initiative was launched in February to evaluate patient concerns and develop appropriate responses for improving service.

"For example, we received some comments that the noise level in the hospital was distracting for patients, " Boller explains.  "In response, we have created a 'Shhh Campaign' that features posters and other reminders for staff to speak more quietly to avoid bothering patients as well as protect patient confidentiality.

"Another effort is our 'Be the Best' campaign, urging patients and their families to talk to us about any problems while they are in the hospital, rather than waiting until after discharge, so we can address their concerns right away," she adds. "We'd really rather take care of problems right away to make patients' experiences at St. Luke's as pleasant as possible."

Boller notes that anxiety and pain management are two common patient concerns.  "We want to provide an environment that comforts patients and their families and promotes relaxation and stress relief," she says.  "We've improved the physical appearance of the hospital by adding appealing artwork.  We have provided employee training in customer service techniques.  We also have installed the Continuous Ambient Relaxation Environment (C.A.R.E.) channel on all televisions to provide soothing music and scenic nature videos to help patients deal with anxiety."

Service improvement programs such as these have increased the level of patient satisfaction at St. Luke's, Boller says.  The process, however, is continuous.  "We really need to receive honest survey feedback - both good and bad - to ensure that we provide our patients with the best possible experience they can have."

If you need information about answering questions on patient satisfaction surveys, please call the Nursing Administration Office at (415) 641-6620.

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