Optimizing Patient Experience in the Emergency Department

Emergency department (ED) patient experience is a growing area of focus for leaders in the ED and throughout health care. While many factors intrinsic to the ED care environment add to the challenge of providing patients with an excellent experience, doing so holds many benefits, including improved patient compliance and health outcomes, improved workplace satisfaction and reduced provider and staff burnout, decreased malpractice risk, and increased revenue. Although wait time is a major driver of patient experience, provider and staff communication are critically important and excellent communication and perceived empathy may mitigate long waits, overcrowded environments, and other challenges.