Do patient surveys work?
Healthcare Commission, London, UK. rachel.reeves@gmail.com OBJECTIVES: To assess current attitudes towards the national patient survey programme in England, establish the extent to which survey results are used and identify barriers and incentives for using them. DESIGN: Qualitative interviews with hospital staff responsible for implementing the patient surveys (survey leads). SETTING: National Health Service (NHS) hospital organisations (trusts) in England. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-four patient survey leads for NHS trusts. RESULTS: Perceptions of the patient surveys were mainly positive and were reported to be improving. Interviewees welcomed the surveys’ regular repetition and thought the questionnaires, survey methods and reporting of results, particularly inter-organisational benchmark charts, were of a good standard. The survey results were widely used in action planning and were thought to support organisational patient-centredness. There was variation in the extent to which trusts d
