title: Promoting positive outcomes from patient complaints.
abstract: Complaints from patients often indicate their difficulty in coping with the health care system. Nurses need to acknowledge these complaints and help the patient resolve the problem. They need to see complaints as part of a continuous dialogue with their patients and their families. In addition, nurses need to use these complaints to assess the needs of the patient and to evaluate the care and delivery of services. This article presents nine steps the nurse can take when a patient or family member has a complaint.
authors.affiliation: Hermann Hospital, Texas Medical Center in Houston, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Luther
authors.forename: M B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Pais
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Silberblatt
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000328:Adult; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009723:Nurse-Patient Relations; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome