title: Physician-initiated follow-up contact improves patient satisfaction, provides opportunities to improve care.
abstract: Numerous studies have shown that follow-up contact with patients after they have received care in the ED can move the needle upward on patient satisfaction surveys. Many organizations give this responsibility to ancillary staff, but an initiative involving all 22 EDs within Kaiser Permanente's northern California region is challenging the treating providers to initiate this follow-up. Three years into the initiative, ED directors indicate that while obtaining physician buy-in of the practice was initially challenging, most now view the approach as an opportunity to improve care. A pilot of the approach found that there is little difference between phone contact and e-mail communications, although e-mail contact is much more efficient. Most providers take advantage of a web-based tool to make follow-up contact with patients via e-mail. The approach is a HIPAA-complaint process that enables providers to include confidential medical information within the e-mail communications. Providers say the follow-up contact gives them an opportunity to reinforce important medical instructions and to answer any questions the patient may have neglected to ask during the medical emergency. Administrators recommend that ED managers interested in implementing postED-visit contacts establish attainable goals for their providers and publish performance figures as means to improve adoption of the practice.
mesh_terms: D002140:California; D003266:Continuity of Patient Care; D034742:Electronic Mail; D004635:Emergency Medicine; D006801:Humans; D019982:Organizational Case Studies; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D058996:Quality Improvement