Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/903742
15 PATIENT EXPERIENCE Study: Patients Feeling Intimidated During Physician Visits May Act Like Hostages By Morgan Haefner F earful or confused patients may feel helpless and like they are negotiating for their healthcare, similar to how a hostage would feel, according to a study published in PubMed. For the report, researchers — led by Leonard Berry, PhD, a professor in the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University in College Station — analyzed prior research and pa- tient testimonials. Here are five takeaways from the study. 1. When patients feel intimidated by phy- sicians, a feeling the researchers define as "hostage bargaining syndrome," it is a "real phenomenon that many patients experience, particularly those with a serious disease or in a state of great vulnerability," Dr. Berry told Reuters. 2. Despite physicians' efforts to foster active conversation, families of cancer patients and patients in intensive care units may feel dependent on physicians to direct their treatment path. When medical errors or unexpected side effects occur, this could increase feelings of powerlessness, the re- searchers noted. 3. "This story (of a parent whose child is receiving extended inpatient care) could just as easily be that of a 70-year-old man with coronary artery disease who is unsure about the cardiologist's recommendation for surgery but hesitates to question it, or a 27-year-old woman with cancer who does not express her fear of treatment-related infertility to her oncologist," according to the study. 4. e study noted physician-patient relationships are not like consumer service relationships, in which customers may feel comfortable asking about bad service. In- stead, healthcare can create an unequal pow- er balance leaving the patient feeling in need of the physician. Patients exuding symptoms of hostage bargaining syndrome may "worry about being perceived as troublemakers or 'difficult' for fear that it could affect the qual- ity of care they receive," the researchers said. 5. To combat hostage bargaining syndrome and side effects like depression and lone- liness in the medical field, Dr. Berry told Reuters physicians should pursue "shared decision-making," among other strategies. Shared decision-making is when physicians provide patients treatment options and pa- tients discuss which option they prefer. n Patients' Perception of Hospital Food Influenced by Ordering, Delivery Experience By Mackenzie Bean P atients' perceptions of hospital food quality are strongly influenced by the meal ordering and delivery process, according to research conducted by Press Ganey on behalf of Compass One Healthcare. To compile the report, Press Ganey Consulting spoke with 45 patients recently discharged from New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System about their opinions on hospital food during three separate focus groups. Most participants demonstrated stronger attitudes about the ordering, availability and delivery of their hospital meals, as opposed to the quality of the food. Press Ganey also analyzed 2014 to 2016 survey data on the inpatient food experience for 9,734 patients treated at seven urban acute care hospitals in the Midwest, West and Southeast. Sixty-four percent of respondents who gave their hospital the highest ratings for meal order accuracy also gave high ratings for food quality. In contrast, only 10 percent of respondents who gave their hospital low rankings for food accuracy gave the hospital a high rating for food quality. Press Ganey's data suggested the timeliness of meal delivery and the courtesy of the person serving the food influenced patients' perception of food quality in a manner similar to meal order accuracy. "Patients expect the right food to be delivered on time and in a courte- ous way, and when those baseline expectations are met, achieving opti- mal ratings for food quality becomes highly likely," researchers wrote in the whitepaper. n Rady Children's Hospital Allows Pediatric Patients to Drive to the OR By Leo Vartorella S an Diego-based Rady Children's Hospital now allows children to ride in remote control cars on their way to surgery, according to NBC San Diego. Patients ages 3 to 8 years old can either drive the car to the operating room or ride in the car and have a physician or nurse operate it remotely. San Diego Regional Law Enforcement Agencies donated the cars, purchas- ing them with funds raised through a teddy bear drive. "It's a very stressful moment when kids come into the operating room for their families," said Daniela Carvalho, MD, medical director of surgical services at Rady Children's Hospital. "When they see these cars they just light up. They are happy." n