Understanding and Using Health Experiences

Book excerpt: Improving patient experience is a global priority for health policy-makers and care providers. The need to look at healthcare delivery through the eyes of patients is widely accepted, but how should it be done? What use can be made of this information, and what evidence is there that such exercises lead to better care? Understanding and Using Health Experiences: Improving patient care examines a broad range of different sources and techniques for gathering and analyzing health experiences. Providing an accessible and pragmatic overview of the diversity and richness of research in the field this book explores the strengths and limitations of different approaches, and assesses what each method can contribute to improving people's experience of illness, and the way that health services are delivered. The book looks at topics such as using focus groups to understand experiences of health and illness, patient surveys, and the internet as a source of information on people's experience. Using clear and engaging examples throughout, the book is accessibly written by experts in social science, health services, and health policy, and will be valuable to postgraduate students, healthcare practitioners, and individuals working in health and social policy, public sector management, and research.