How do patient and care experience data inform policy and practice? Insights from the Irish National Care Experience Programme

ISSUE: Patient experiences are central to the delivery of quality, person-centred care and an important predictor of outcomes. Prior to 2017, there was no unified, national approach to the collection of care experience data in Ireland. DESCRIPTION OF THE PROBLEM: The National Care Experience Programme is a partnership between a regulator, policy makers and the Irish public health service, with a suite of surveys of inpatient, maternity, nursing home and end of life care. The surveys aim to learn from people's feedback on health and social care services to identify areas of good experience and areas requiring improvement. RESULTS: Findings have informed national policies, including a healthcare communication programme to support staff to develop communication skills with patients and families. Survey data provide a key input to the Irish health quality indicator framework and the Health Systems Performance Assessment Framework, which assess the overall performance of the Irish health system. National Maternity Experience Survey results informed the allocation of funding for post-natal supports and new lactation consultant posts, and supported the implementation of a specialist perinatal mental health services model of care, leading to increased diagnosis and vigilance of mental health issues ante- and postnatally. National Nursing Home Experience Survey findings supported legislative amendments, including provision for the delivery of in-person advocacy awareness campaigns and the strengthening of complaints processes within nursing homes. LESSONS: In order to maximise the use of survey findings and ensure the voices of people using health and social care services are acted on, routine surveying of care experiences is required to track the impact of policy and practice initiatives. The programme is currently expanding to include people's experiences of cancer care and mental health services, in addition to exploring options for continuous, local care experience surveys.