Public and patient experience and involvement in health service planning

The acceptability of health and social care services is an important marker of quality, with patient feedback being a component in healthcare quality frameworks in most countries in the developed world[i]. Involving patients, their families and their carers in the design and improvement of services as well as in decisions about their individual care is a key way of improving public and patient experience, with evidence showing that patient involvement can lead to both improved health outcomes and more efficient resource allocation[ii].

In England, the NHS Constitution pledges that ‘the patient will be at the heart of everything the NHS does’,[iii] while the NHS Patient and Public Participation Policy sets out the vision that ‘by listening to people who use and care about services, [the NHS] can understand their diverse health needs better, and focus on and respond to what matters to them [in order to] improve patient safety, patient experience and health outcomes’.[iv]

The NHS in England has published guidance on public and patient involvement, based on the 10 principles set out in figure F below[v]. Potential sources of data on patient experience are shown in Figure G, with more information on NHS-specific resources available through the NHS Insights website[vi]. Methodology and toolkits for improving patient participation and experience have also been developed by the independent healthcare think-tank, The Kings Fund[vii]^,[viii].

Figure F: Principles of participation, adapted from Patient and public participation
in commissioning health and care (NHS England, 2017)

Figure G: Sources of data on patient experience, adapted from Patient and public participation in commissioning health and care (NHS England, 2017) 

© Flora Ogilvie 2017