title: Building an ethical environment improves patient privacy and satisfaction in the crowded emergency department: a quasi-experimental study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To evaluate the effectiveness of a multifaceted intervention in improving emergency department (ED) patient privacy and satisfaction in the crowded ED setting.
  
  
  METHODS
  A pre- and post-intervention study was conducted. A multifaceted intervention was implemented in a university-affiliated hospital ED. The intervention developed strategies to improve ED patient privacy and satisfaction, including redesigning the ED environment, process management, access control, and staff education and training, and encouraging ethics consultation. The effectiveness of the intervention was evaluated using patient surveys. Eligibility data were collected after the intervention and compared to data collected before the intervention. Differences in patient satisfaction and patient perception of privacy were adjusted for predefined covariates using multivariable ordinal logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Structured questionnaires were collected with 313 ED patients before the intervention and 341 ED patients after the intervention. There were no important covariate differences, except for treatment area, between the two groups. Significant improvements were observed in patient perception of "personal information overheard by others", being "seen by irrelevant persons", having "unintentionally heard inappropriate conversations from healthcare providers", and experiencing "providers' respect for my privacy". There was significant improvement in patient overall perception of privacy and satisfaction. There were statistically significant correlations between the intervention and patient overall perception of privacy and satisfaction on multivariable analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Significant improvements were achieved with an intervention. Patients perceived significantly more privacy and satisfaction in ED care after the intervention. We believe that these improvements were the result of major philosophical, administrative, and operational changes aimed at respecting both patient privacy and satisfaction.
authors: Department of Emergency Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors: Yen-Ko
authors: YK
authors: Lin
authors: Wei-Che
authors: WC
authors: Lee
authors: Liang-Chi
authors: LC
authors: Kuo
authors: Yuan-Chia
authors: YC
authors: Cheng
authors: Chia-Ju
authors: CJ
authors: Lin
authors: Hsing-Lin
authors: HL
authors: Lin
authors: Chao-Wen
authors: CW
authors: Chen
authors: Tsung-Ying
authors: TY
authors: Lin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002681:China; D003219:Confidentiality; D003441:Crowding; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000941:ethics* / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards / Q000639:trends; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000941:ethics* / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D033061:Ethics Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education*; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D018907:Privacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires