The dimension of the Press Ganey Survey most important in evaluating patient satisfaction in the academic outpatient orthopedic surgery setting

Many studies have examined modifiable and nonmodifiable patient factors influencing patient satisfaction scores. The objective of this study was to evaluate which of the 6 domains making up the Press Ganey Survey had a greater magnitude of relative importance in the expected relationship with patient satisfaction in outpatient orthopedic surgery encounters. Press Ganey Survey satisfaction scores from 4737 clinical encounters from adult reconstructive surgery, sports medicine, hand, foot and ankle, trauma, and general orthopedic clinics at a single academic center from November 2010 to May 2017 were reviewed. Multiple patient factors, modifiable and nonmodifiable, were recorded. The Press Ganey Survey was divided into 6 domains to evaluate the relative importance of each to total patient satisfaction. The standardized parameter estimates from the multiple linear regression revealed that of the 6 domains making up the Press Ganey Survey, care provider had the greatest magnitude of relative importance in the expected relationship with total patient satisfaction (ß=0.53972). Approximately 80% of the variance in total patient satisfaction was accounted for by the care provider. The relative importance of the remaining 5 domains was as follows: access (ß=0.23483), personal issues (ß=0.16796), moving through the visit (ß=0.16795), nurse/assistant (ß=0.10010), and special services/valet (ß=0.06302). A principal components analysis suggested a 6-factor solution for the Press Ganey total satisfaction scale; care provider was the most dominant factor, and valet parking services was the least. The care provider had the most influence on the patient's overall satisfaction. Altogether, access, personal issues, moving through the visit, nurse/assistant, and special services/valet accounted for only approximately 20% of the total variance in patient satisfaction. This knowledge can be used by providers in the current health care climate, where patient consumerism is developing into the driver of care. This could allow resources to be focused on areas of influence, yielding a greater impact on patient satisfaction scores.