The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
The Hospital Authority (HA) Board Meeting today (December 19) discussed and endorsed the Report of the "2023 Patient Experience Survey on Inpatient Service" (the Survey). Over 90 per cent of interviewed patients rated their overall inpatient experience as good to excellent in the Survey, reflecting healthcare staff's professionalism and unwavering efforts in providing quality service as earning patients' recognition, support and trust.
The Survey, which was the first comprehensive patient experience survey after the HA's resumption of service to full normalcy, was conducted from October 2023 to April 2024. The Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care (JCSPHPC) of the Faculty of Medicine of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) was commissioned by the HA to conduct the Survey, with around 10,000 randomly selected patients discharged from 26 public hospitals interviewed. In addition to traditional telephone interviews, this survey introduced electronic questionnaires as an alternative option for respondents.
The Survey examined patients' experiences of various care aspects including admission, evaluation of hospital environment, facilities and hospital staff, care and treatment, provision of information upon discharge, and overall impression on the hospital. To ensure that the Survey reflects the latest developments of the HA's services, new survey items were added in the questionnaire to understand patient experiences on care co-ordination, discharge support, the "HA Go" mobile application and community care services.
Professor Eliza Wong of the JCSPHPC of the Faculty of Medicine of the CUHK said that the findings revealed that the overall inpatient experience of the interviewed patients was very positive, with 91 per cent of the respondents rating their overall inpatient experience at the 26 public hospitals at 7 or above (along a scoring scale of 0 to 10), with the average score being 8.1.
Patient feedback highlighted several positive areas, including high confidence in healthcare staff, clear and understandable answers from nurses and allied health professionals, being treated with respect, sufficient privacy protection, and staff's provision of clear and understandable explanations on medication usage and effects. Furthermore, certain aspects showed significant improvement compared with a similar survey conducted in 2019, particularly in patients' involvement during the treatment and discharge process, as well as the provision of rehabilitation and care information to patients' families or caregivers.
"The survey results also identified some areas for improvement, including self introduction of healthcare staff, provision of discharge information and information about feedback channels. Additionally, while some aspects received good overall ratings, there were relatively large variations in scores among hospitals in areas such as comforting patients' worries or fears by hospital staff; patients being bothered when resting at wards; explanations of medication side effects; provision of rehabilitation information to family or caregivers; staff assistance in using "HA Go"; patient involvement; and opportunities for patients' families or caregivers to talk to doctors. These variations merit investigation and sharing of good practices among individual hospitals to enhance the overall service quality," Professor Wong added.
The HA Chief Manager (Patient Relations and Engagement), Ms Fion Lee, expressed gratitude to the interviewed patients for their participation and valuable feedback, which helps the HA better understand the needs and concerns of patients and the public. The positive ratings of inpatient services by the interviewed patients also serve as great encouragement to the healthcare teams.
"People-centred care lies at the HA's core values and service goals. Understanding patients' opinions and experiences helps the HA continuously monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of various measures. The HA will thoroughly examine the survey results and implement different initiatives to enhance patient experiences, including promotion of compassionate communication, enhancement of public feedback channels, promulgation and support for the use of "HA Go", and exploration of care information integration at "HA Go" to enhance the overall service quality," Ms Lee said.
Members of the public are welcome to browse the full Report of the Survey, which can be accessed online under "Patient Experience Survey" of "Special Reports" in the "Corporate News" section of the HA website www.ha.org.hk.
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