EDMONTON – The Health Quality Council of Alberta’s Satisfaction and Experience with Health Care Services Survey indicates 66 percent of Albertans are satisfied with the healthcare services they received, compared to 62 percent in 2010 and 64 percent in 2012. Patient satisfaction rates improved in all five zones of Alberta Health Services (AHS).

As well, three out of every four respondents rated the quality of AHS healthcare services as good or excellent.

“We are very encouraged by the results of the HQCA survey,” says AHS President and CEO Vickie Kaminski (pictured). “We have worked hard to focus our care around patients and their families, and it is rewarding to see that we are making steady progress. This is a testament to the care provided each day by our front-line workers and all clinicians.”

Kaminski says survey details will be shared throughout the organization in order to inform further healthcare delivery improvements.

“No matter how much progress we make, there is always room for getting better,” says Kaminski. “We will incorporate this feedback as we continue to look for innovative ways to improve patient care and become more effective in providing the best possible programs and services to Albertans.”

AHS is finalizing its Patient First Strategy, which highlights the need to put patients and their families at the centre of all care decisions.

The strategy aims to improve the well-being of all Albertans – no matter where they live or what their healthcare needs may be – by enhancing communication between healthcare providers; between healthcare providers, patients and families; by adopting a team-based approach to care; and by providing better transitions in care.

“I see many aspects of patient- and family-centred care continuously evolving in our facilities,” says Kaminski. “By sharing these innovations province-wide, we can continue to deliver better patient experiences and better patient outcomes.”

Examples include:

• At the South Health Campus in Calgary, patients identify who is ‘family’ and those family members can stay overnight and are welcome to be partners in care in all health system encounters, including during resuscitations.
• The Stollery Children’s Hospital in Edmonton is improving communication with dry-erase whiteboards in all patient rooms. The whiteboards include spaces to write the names of the patient, family and care team. Family members are also encouraged to leave their questions and concerns on the whiteboard, so they can be addressed.

“We’ve also implemented several other provincial initiatives to improve patient care processes and include patients and families in decision-making,” Kaminski says.

In addition to the HQCA patient satisfaction survey, which is completed every two years, AHS offers many other mechanisms for patients to share feedback on their experiences.

These include connecting directly with patient care managers, contacting the AHS Patient Relations department, sharing experiences and interactions on our Passion for Health and Your Voice webpages, contacting Health Advisory Councils, or emailing the office of the Official Administrator or the Office of the President and CEO.

Alberta Health Services is the provincial health authority responsible for planning and delivering health supports and services for more than four million adults and children living in Alberta. Its mission is to provide a patient-focused, quality health system that is accessible and sustainable for all Albertans.