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Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) is taking part in the World Innovation Summit for Health 2015 (WISH), taking place in Doha today and tomorrow.
At the conference, which is attended by international leaders in healthcare, HMC will be showcasing their patient experience tracker app, ‘How Was Your Visit?’ which has been piloted in the National Center for Cancer Care and Research (NCCCR) over the last three months.
The app is iPad based and being featured as part of the Young Innovators Showcase and staff from NCCCR will be demonstrating how the app works. It is available in both English and Arabic and has proved very popular with patients. It asks patients to rate their visit to the hospital; such as the quality of service, how they were welcomed on arrival and how they found the care given by both doctors and nurses. Out of those who have responded so far, the average score for the eight questions was four out of five.
The application is available for all patients and visitors to complete and can be found on iPads in all the main departments of the NCCCR. In addition, handheld iPads are also available in each department to provide easier access for patients.
Dr. Al Hareth Al Khater, Senior Consultant at NCCCR, explained that the application has enabled staff at the hospital to make changes for the benefits of patients, based on the feedback received via the app.
“We are delighted with the results from the app so far – they have been extremely positive and we find this very encouraging, as we always aim to provide the safest, most effective care at the NCCCR. However, we know there is always room for improvement and we are continuously looking to make sure our patients have the best experience possible when they come to our hospital,” said Dr. Al Khater.
He added that: “The majority of our patients are living with a cancer diagnosis and therefore we see them regularly for treatment and follow up - we want to make sure they feel safe and cared for, in addition to receiving the best available treatment. The app is another channel by which patients can provide feedback, in addition to providing written feedback or approaching any member of staff directly.”
Ms. Lara Waywell, Executive Director for the NCCCR, explained how it has been possible to make real changes to patient care, based on the feedback from the app. “So far we have received some really great feedback from patients and made positive changes as a result. For example, more staff have been employed to work at the front entrance of the hospital to provide assistance to patients, a female-only waiting area has been created in the reception area and we are working with architects to improve the environment in the Day Care Unit and reviewing the scheduling of appointments and booking process to improve patient flow there.”
Mr. Ali Al Khater, Executive Director for Corporate communications explained that the app was helping the hospital to improve patient experience in real time, which is why the app is a great solution for HMC.
“This app is an example of innovative care at HMC and what makes it unique is the way the results are able to be fed back to the leadership team in real time. They come through on a regular basis and the hospital leadership team can act quickly to resolve any issues that arise. The app can also help inform us on the way we plan and deliver services in the future.”
Mr. Al Khater added that: “We want all of our services to be appropriate and to do this we need to listen to what patients want. As a result, we are keen to make sure the app is well used by our patients and that it enables a regular open dialogue. We hope to roll the app out to other hospitals in the near future but, in the meantime, we are looking at expanding its reach at NCCCR. We are adapting it for use with our inpatients and we would like to encourage all patients to the hospital to use the app on their visits to the hospital.”
