title: Attributes associated with patient perceived outcome in an academic chronic pain clinic.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Patient satisfaction is tied to outcome, but there is scant literature on the relationship of patient perceived outcome and attributes of the pain clinic visit, including the patient interaction with the pain management specialist. The primary purpose of this study is to identify attributes of the patient-provider interaction most strongly associated with patient perceived outcome of their clinic visit. The secondary aim is to correlate patient perceived outcome with patient self-rated overall health.
  
  
  METHODS
  A patient satisfaction survey conducted via phone approximately 3 weeks after the patient's pain clinic visit.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The response rate was 60.2%; 987 patient surveys collected between 2006 and 2010 were used in the analysis. Four factors were significantly associated with the outcome: (1) Explanations by the physician of the patient's condition and treatment, (2) clear instructions regarding post-appointment activities, (3) knowing the patient as a person, and (4) the patient's self-rated health. In terms of the secondary objective, those who answered very good/excellent regarding their self-rated health had an 87% increased odds of better (very good/excellent) outcome of their pain clinic visit (or 1.87 times the odds of better outcome) compared with those who answered poor/fair/good.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that pain physicians may positively impact patient perceived outcomes of clinic visits by explaining the patient's condition and treatment, providing instructions, and taking the time to understand the patient and their values.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.A.
authors.forename: Terrence L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Trentman
authors.forename: Yu-Hui H
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: James J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Chien
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Rosenfeld
authors.forename: Andrew W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Gorlin
authors.forename: David P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Seamans
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Freeman
authors.forename: Laurie L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Wilshusen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018710:Pain Clinics; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010465:Perception; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: chronic; outcomes; pain; patient attributes; patient perceptions; patient satisfaction