Online patient feedback: a scoping review and stakeholder consultation to guide health policy

Abstract

Objective To provide a synthesis of the current evidence base of online patient feedback using a scoping review and a consultation of stakeholders in England, UK. Methods We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL and the Social Science Citation Index and conducted hand searches up to January 2018. We included primary studies of internet-based reviews and other online feedback (e.g. social media and blogs) from patients, carers or the public about health care providers (individuals, services or organizations). Key findings were extracted and tabulated for further synthesis guided by the themes arising from a stakeholder consultation. Results The review found that awareness and usage of online feedback is increasing. Most feedback is about physicians, and is typically positive. Online reviews and ratings are used by some service users to inform choice of provider or treatment while providers tend to be concerned about the validity and representativeness of feedback. Reviewed studies found that those who post feedback are generally not representative of the general population, tending to be younger and more educated, but online feedback does broadly correlate with some other measures of health care quality. Conclusions In an increasingly digital society, where citizens provide and use feedback for a range of goods and services, online patient feedback can offer a convenient, low cost and widely accessible mechanism to capture experiences of health care, while being mindful to avoid issues of digital exclusion. This review provides important insights to inform policy development seeking to harness the opportunities offered by online feedback.

Online patient feedback as a measure of quality in primary care: a multimethod study using correlation and qualitative analysis

“…Our findings are consistent with previous research that has shown that the majority of online feedback is positive 7 16–18. This is contrary to the opinions of GPs, who have been found to perceive online feedback as predominantly negative 11.…”

“…Online patient feedback is becoming increasingly prevalent 7. A recent UK survey showed that 42% of respondents had read and 8% had posted online feedback about healthcare experiences on various types of patient feedback websites 8.…”

Exploring Patients’ Pharmacy Stories: An Analysis of Online Feedback 

“…Healthcare professionals, particularly general practitioners (GPs), have expressed their concerns that feedback is unre ective of the true performance of an organisation and the potential for negative user-driven content to cause reputational damage [4,7]. Hence, the majority of GPs rarely encourage patients to leave online feedback due to fear of it becoming an outlet for disgruntled patients [10], despite studies reporting that a patient feedback is often positive [4,[9][10][11][12][13]. Some healthcare staff do meaningfully engage and respond to patient feedback [14], however, there is little understanding of engagement with patient feedback in the pharmacy sector.…”

“…The collation and analysis of patient feedback data from across the UK is a useful exercise, facilitating understanding of the broad issues experienced by patients when interacting with pharmacy services, with potential for shaping future development and improvement within the sector. Previous research tends to focus on patient's opinion of doctors [4,11,12,15,16] while studies focusing on patients' opinions of pharmacy and pharmacy services have only been conducted through interviews and surveys [17][18][19][20][21][22][23].…”

Learning from Online Voices: A Mixed Methods Approach to Explore Patient Online Reviews of Hospital Care in Portugal

“…The collection of citizens' opinions about the Quality of Health Services, allows for a subjective report distinct from other quality measures (e.g., quality indicators). It is usually carried out in a structured, offline, and conventional way (e.g., satisfaction surveys) [1,2], but globalization and the internet have brought a novel feedback source called analysis of online comments and classifications (OCC) [3,4].…”