Enhancing the quality of the patient experience in an academic medical center.

149 Background: As value-based purchasing evolves, there is a constant focus on efficiency and quality of care delivered during patient interactions before, during, and after each encounter. While perception of quality varies amongst patients, effective communication, patient involvement, and employee engagement have proven to impact patient satisfaction and perceived quality. MD Anderson Cancer Center is re-thinking its practices to provide exceptional quality in clinical care and operations. Methods: MDA has developed a Patient Experience Steering Committee to lay the foundation for the experience strategy and standardization of quality care. The creation of a dedicated patient experience position and the formation of inpatient and ambulatory experience groups have helped to focus initiatives around patient feedback and satisfaction scores. Steps have been taken to enhance patient-focused care: Incentive goals for staff/faculty; Focused communications; Enhanced standards and accountability; Formal round...