An international focus on cardiac surgery nursing : patient experience

The value of the patient experience as one of the pillars of ‘quality healthcare’ has been gaining international recognition (Doyle et al, 2013; Bull et al, 2019). Although mortality outcomes have been widely regarded as the core quality measure from as early as 1977 in the UK (English, 1978) and 1987 is the USA (Shroyer et al, 2008), there is a growing appreciation for the unique insights that patients can provide. Patients can often offer specific information regarding areas for improvement in existing services (Millenson and Macri, 2012) and improving and benchmarking hospital performance (Beattie et al, 2015). Examples include the Pay For Performance (P4P) programmes in Australia and the use of patient experience in some USA and UK programmes (the Integrated Healthcare Association Programme and Quality and Outcomes Framework, respectively), which aim to identify areas for change and strategic commissioning (World Health Organization, 2014). Patient experience and engagement in healthcare can take many forms, including detailed patient reflections on their experience, patient-led or co-produced innovations to enhance services, and routine patient experience measurement.