Amid growing financial pressure to improve scores on patient satisfaction surveys, some hospitals are looking beyond the potential ding associated with low grades. They are working to redraft their approach to care in an effort to ensure that patients not only have a positive experience but also get the right care at the right time while being spared from harm.

This involves a variety of approaches, from relatively ambitious moves such as creating a senior-level position charged with improving patient experience to something as seemingly simple as asking patients about their biggest hopes, fears or concerns about their care.

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A Web-based mentoring service launched in August 2012 has attracted 400 active users in its effort to help underrepresented minorities pursue careers in medicine.

The project, DiverseMedicine Inc., allows users to request a personal mentor to answer questions through the website’s instant messaging or video chat functions. High school, college and medical students also use discussion forums to cover topics such as admissions testing and residency applications.

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Informed-consent documents that are shorter and use simpler language, bigger type and graphics lead to dramatically improved understanding of risks and benefits, said a study posted online May 13 in JAMA Pediatrics, formerly Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

Researchers tested various types of forms — some long and complex, some shorter and simpler, some with graphics and some without — among 640 parents of children scheduled for elective surgery. The forms were designed to deliver the traditional elements of an informed consent-document for the clinical trial of a fictional pain-relieving drug called Painaway. The parents were quizzed after going through the informed-consent process to determine whether they understood what was presented about the risks and benefits of trial participation.

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Amid alarming rates of physician burnout, hundreds of clinics nationwide are redesigning their practices with a goal in mind beyond improving the quality of care. They are aiming to make life as a primary care doctor enjoyable once more.

Twenty-three of these clinics are profiled in a report in the May/June Annals of Family Medicine that describes practice innovations that can ease the chaos, administrative overload, miscommunication and computerized busy work that too often characterize primary care. These clinics find that planning visits ahead of time, delegating more tasks to nurses and medical assistants, holding daily meetings and using standing orders for recurring items not only improves patient satisfaction but also creates happier doctors.

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