Independent research linking patient feedback left on the NHS Choices website and objective measures of hospital performance has been published by Imperial College London. Better-rated hospitals tend to have lower death rates and lower readmission rates. Hospitals rated as cleaner by patients have also been found to have lower MRSA rates
The research is significant because it’s the first to link unsolicited patient ratings and objective measures of quality, signalling that online patient feedback may be more insightful and valuable than previously thought.
Record traffic to the NHS Choices website shows that online feedback offers an increasingly popular, convenient way for patients to make informed choices about their healthcare and for those treating them to respond to comments and improve services.
Further information
See Imperial College press release