This blog is devoted to BIOL 6988, a graduate level seminar in the biological sciences at Youngstown State University. While targeted towards graduate students, BIOL 6988 actively incorporates undergraduate participants in their scholastic endeavors in the biological sciences. This blog is intended as a educational tool not just for YSU students and faculty, but for anyone who wishes to contribute to an active-learning environment.
This past Friday, both Jessica and Ana presented their clinical research work on patient satisfaction. It was a marvelous tag team seminar. Well done, ladies!
Last Friday, Jessica and Anna did an awesome presenting their research. They discussed with us what patient satisfaction is and why it is so important for both patients and doctors to know about the overall process of their experience. Some patients are misinformed as to where they should go when they have an injury or an illness and this can cost them valuable time whereas if they knew ahead of time whether to go to an emergency department or an urgent care facility it could improve their outlook on the experience. Jessica and Anna's research provided patients entering the emergency department a survey that answered basic questions about the patient as well as questions about why they were there, what kind of tests they could expect, and others. They were also given another survey following their departure of the ED that asked similar types of questions about their experience. These answers were analyzed to determine the overall patient satisfaction with their experience where they found that the majority of patients were satisfied with their time in the ED. I thought this was an interesting study and they both presented the research very well. Do you think that a patient's overall experience could also be altered from them worrying about the costs of the tests they undergo and if their insurance covers it or not? In other words, do you think patients would have a more optimistic outlook on their health and the experience in the facility if they were not stressed about costs of medical bills?
It was great to hear Annas project fully fleshed out! I got a to hear a brief overview during the three minute thesis event and was really interested. Now this seminar has a special significance to me since I have people close to me who suffer from from chronic and terminal illnesses. An important aspect of their treatment often revolves around what specialist to see, if they even can, as well as if their insurance will cover it.
Now, with that being said, I have always believed that a patients prognosis is heavily dependent on their state of mind. There have been several studies already which have shown that patients with strong support groups, have a sense of spirituality, faith, or religious beliefs, often present favorably following illnesses. This is also often seen in patients with terminal illnesses or patients which are unable to receive treatment.
Knowing this as well as seeing the results from Annas and Jessicas project, do you think that a patients prognosis and more importantly, their quality of life, are linked to their ability to manage and cope with stress?
Jessica and Anna did a great job on their presentations. I was personally enlightened on how different experiences in the ED can contribute to a patient's satisfaction.
To answer Britney's question, a patient entering a facility with an insurance that can pay for his/her health needs would only be concern about how fast he/she can meet a health care professional. Going to a hospital without any good financial backing or insurance alone is stressful. Meeting the best staff and being giving the best care may not make the patient 100% satisfied if he is asked to pay for tests he can not afford. Being able to afford the health care in a facility I think correlates with patient satisfaction.
For Frank's question, a patient who can afford his basic needs and has a "standard" life has fewer things to be stressed about compared to another who can not. The quality of life definitely affects a patient's way of managing/coping with stress.
For Brittney's question, I feel that a patient would have a better outlook on their visit if they were not worrying about the cost of the visit, procedures and aftercare. From personal experience, when a patient is told about the cost and if insurance is not covering it, typically they enter the appointment with a negative outlook. As for Frank's question, prognosis and quality of life are linked to stress management. In particular, patient's quality of life has a great effect on their stress levels and whether or not they are equipped mentally to handle that stress.
What I found particularly interesting about Jessica's and Anna's presentations was how diverse their work seemed to be compared to the work I am doing with bacterial genomics. Just how broad biology is and how our work is needed in various fields, and the different ways biologists can approach a problem. I wasn’t too surprised to see a bit of a peak in patient satisfaction regarding length of stay. Simply having to be in urgent care is stressful, and this can make people antsy. Ensuring clinical information is communicated clearly and timely will put a patient at ease. One additional factor I’d be curious to see would account for patients with a background in medicine who I believe would respond differently than patients who are uneducated in medical procedures. I think the cost of treatment for sure weighs on the minds of some patients, but I would think that the hospital wouldn't let the patient's worry stop them from giving them treatment they need. Excessive and unnecessary testing may occur depending on the condition of the patient, and this can and will cause undue stress for the patient. Patients are not only worrying about their health condition but are burdened with concerns over paying off their visit. As Thywill said, even getting great medical care wouldn’t ease the thought of affordability. Thywill’s answer to Frank’s question is along the lines of what I was thinking. Of course a mild prognosis would be less stressful than a severe one, and a patient with a higher QoL can have more ability to cope with stress.
Jessica and Anna presentation was interesting. Satisfaction is very relative on everyone's point of view but its amazing how different experiences in the ED contributed to patients satisfaction.
For sure the dollar factor is the determinant in most situations, for instance falling ill is already stressful and then not having any insurance and no money most hospitals cannot attend to your needs.Therefore being able to afford healthcare correlates with patients satisfaction.
To answer Frank's question, I agree that the privileged patients in terms of status quo should have less things to worry about, since they are greatly insured than the other patients.
Hello all, I know this is super late, but better late than never. I thought shifting gears and hearing about the biomedical research that Dr. Tall's students, Anna and Jessica, performed was very interesting. As for Brittney's question, I think it could have made an impact. The health insurance policies in this country, unfortunately, do not cater to all groups of people (which is another variable for another study probably). As for Frank's question, absolutely. Stress can greatly impact a persons health and recovery in a negative manner. Therefore, I do believe the two have a very important relationship when it comes to treatment environment.
Last Friday, Jessica and Anna did an awesome presenting their research. They discussed with us what patient satisfaction is and why it is so important for both patients and doctors to know about the overall process of their experience. Some patients are misinformed as to where they should go when they have an injury or an illness and this can cost them valuable time whereas if they knew ahead of time whether to go to an emergency department or an urgent care facility it could improve their outlook on the experience. Jessica and Anna's research provided patients entering the emergency department a survey that answered basic questions about the patient as well as questions about why they were there, what kind of tests they could expect, and others. They were also given another survey following their departure of the ED that asked similar types of questions about their experience. These answers were analyzed to determine the overall patient satisfaction with their experience where they found that the majority of patients were satisfied with their time in the ED. I thought this was an interesting study and they both presented the research very well.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that a patient's overall experience could also be altered from them worrying about the costs of the tests they undergo and if their insurance covers it or not? In other words, do you think patients would have a more optimistic outlook on their health and the experience in the facility if they were not stressed about costs of medical bills?
It was great to hear Annas project fully fleshed out! I got a to hear a brief overview during the three minute thesis event and was really interested. Now this seminar has a special significance to me since I have people close to me who suffer from from chronic and terminal illnesses. An important aspect of their treatment often revolves around what specialist to see, if they even can, as well as if their insurance will cover it.
ReplyDeleteNow, with that being said, I have always believed that a patients prognosis is heavily dependent on their state of mind. There have been several studies already which have shown that patients with strong support groups, have a sense of spirituality, faith, or religious beliefs, often present favorably following illnesses. This is also often seen in patients with terminal illnesses or patients which are unable to receive treatment.
Knowing this as well as seeing the results from Annas and Jessicas project, do you think that a patients prognosis and more importantly, their quality of life, are linked to their ability to manage and cope with stress?
Jessica and Anna did a great job on their presentations. I was personally enlightened on how different experiences in the ED can contribute to a patient's satisfaction.
ReplyDeleteTo answer Britney's question, a patient entering a facility with an insurance that can pay for his/her health needs would only be concern about how fast he/she can meet a health care professional. Going to a hospital without any good financial backing or insurance alone is stressful. Meeting the best staff and being giving the best care may not make the patient 100% satisfied if he is asked to pay for tests he can not afford. Being able to afford the health care in a facility I think correlates with patient satisfaction.
For Frank's question, a patient who can afford his basic needs and has a "standard" life has fewer things to be stressed about compared to another who can not. The quality of life definitely affects a patient's way of managing/coping with stress.
For Brittney's question, I feel that a patient would have a better outlook on their visit if they were not worrying about the cost of the visit, procedures and aftercare. From personal experience, when a patient is told about the cost and if insurance is not covering it, typically they enter the appointment with a negative outlook. As for Frank's question, prognosis and quality of life are linked to stress management. In particular, patient's quality of life has a great effect on their stress levels and whether or not they are equipped mentally to handle that stress.
ReplyDeleteWhat I found particularly interesting about Jessica's and Anna's presentations was how diverse their work seemed to be compared to the work I am doing with bacterial genomics. Just how broad biology is and how our work is needed in various fields, and the different ways biologists can approach a problem. I wasn’t too surprised to see a bit of a peak in patient satisfaction regarding length of stay. Simply having to be in urgent care is stressful, and this can make people antsy. Ensuring clinical information is communicated clearly and timely will put a patient at ease. One additional factor I’d be curious to see would account for patients with a background in medicine who I believe would respond differently than patients who are uneducated in medical procedures.
ReplyDeleteI think the cost of treatment for sure weighs on the minds of some patients, but I would think that the hospital wouldn't let the patient's worry stop them from giving them treatment they need. Excessive and unnecessary testing may occur depending on the condition of the patient, and this can and will cause undue stress for the patient. Patients are not only worrying about their health condition but are burdened with concerns over paying off their visit. As Thywill said, even getting great medical care wouldn’t ease the thought of affordability.
Thywill’s answer to Frank’s question is along the lines of what I was thinking. Of course a mild prognosis would be less stressful than a severe one, and a patient with a higher QoL can have more ability to cope with stress.
Jessica and Anna presentation was interesting. Satisfaction is very relative on everyone's point of view but its amazing how different experiences in the ED contributed to patients satisfaction.
ReplyDeleteFor sure the dollar factor is the determinant in most situations, for instance falling ill is already stressful and then not having any insurance and no money most hospitals cannot attend to your needs.Therefore being able to afford healthcare correlates with patients satisfaction.
To answer Frank's question, I agree that the privileged patients in terms of status quo should have less things to worry about, since they are greatly insured than the other patients.
Hello all, I know this is super late, but better late than never. I thought shifting gears and hearing about the biomedical research that Dr. Tall's students, Anna and Jessica, performed was very interesting. As for Brittney's question, I think it could have made an impact. The health insurance policies in this country, unfortunately, do not cater to all groups of people (which is another variable for another study probably). As for Frank's question, absolutely. Stress can greatly impact a persons health and recovery in a negative manner. Therefore, I do believe the two have a very important relationship when it comes to treatment environment.
ReplyDelete