Incorporation of the emotional indicators of the patient journey into healthcare organization management

Abstract

Background In recent years, attempts have been made to incorporate patients' experiences into healthcare processes, to complement clinical indicators, with what are known as patient‐reported outcome measures (PROMs) and patient‐reported experience measures (PREMs). While the research into PROMs is more developed, the application of PREMs faces some difficulties. The incorporation of emotional indicators into assessments of the experience is an area that remains to be explored. Objectives This study proposes a new technique to analyse the emotions experienced by patients during the care process, examines how these emotions influence their satisfaction and propose that if healthcare services focus more on patients' emotions, they can improve the effectiveness of the sector. Methods The first, qualitative stage, gathered data from patients to design a patient journey (PJ). The PJ was then reproduced as a video. In a subsequent, quantitative stage, the video was shown to experimental participants, and their emotions were measured through facial expression analysis and a questionnaire. Results A new technique to gather emotional data showed that the emotions patients experience do not affect their satisfaction with their clinical care or the physical aspects of the process. However, their emotions did affect their satisfaction with people and organizations. Conclusions The importance of the emotional component of patients' experiences was underlined. Therefore, healthcare organizations should take account of this dimension, as well as the cognitive, to increase patient satisfaction and improve their care processes. Understanding the impact of the emotions identified at the subconscious level can help improve the patient experience. A new methodology was applied that may help health professionals to collect emotional data about patients' experiences and to develop PREMs. Patient/Public Contribution Patients were involved in all stages of this research. In the exploratory phase, some helped define the touchpoints of the PJ. The data from the subsequent experimental phase were collected from another group, and the emotions they experienced were identified through the analysis of their facial expressions. Based on the results of this study, a working group including patients has been established to work on improvements in the PJ.

Digital health integration for noncommunicable diseases: Comprehensive process mapping for full‐life‐cycle management

“…24 The desk research findings were documented diligently to underpin subsequent study segments. To facilitate and clarify further digital touchpoint identification, and based on the existing literature, 15,16,18,20,24,26 we divided full-life-cycle NCD management into five stages: awareness and screening, outpatient and inpatient visitation, evaluation and diagnosis, intervention and treatment, and discharge and adherence.…”

“…Process mapping, synonymous with patient journey or journey modeling, was a person‐centered approach that had arisen in academic research in the past decade. It delved into the procedural and experiential dimensions of service processes, tracking stakeholders’ navigation of healthcare systems and spotlighting key interactions—referred to as touchpoints—with various agents, professionals, and technologies 15,16 . This methodology illuminated health navigation experiences, aiding the refinement of services and identification of care gaps 17 .…”

“…It delved into the procedural and experiential dimensions of service processes, tracking stakeholders' navigation of healthcare systems and spotlighting key interactionsreferred to as touchpoints-with various agents, professionals, and technologies. 15,16 This methodology illuminated health navigation experiences, aiding the refinement of services and identification of care gaps. 17 This methodology had been applied in several studies to explore digital technology's role in health care.…”