Developing a Relevant Taxonomy to Assess Dental School Clinic Patient Complaints

The aims of this study were to categorize and analyze the most frequent patient complaints at the Rutgers School of Dental Medicine (RSDM) clinic in an effort to identify areas in need of improvement. A retrospective review of patient complaints reported to the RSDM Office for Clinical Affairs from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2015 was conducted. A total of 148 unduplicated patients were selected for evaluation because they made at least one official complaint. In total, 193 patient complaints were made during this period. A published complaint taxonomy was used to categorize RSDM patient complaints into domains, categories, and subcategories, highlighting frequent issues of complaint. Of the 193 complaints made, 256 issues were identified. The results showed that the most frequent domain of complaint was Management, followed by Clinical, then Relationships. Institutional Issues and Quality were the most recurring categories coded. Of the 26 subcategories, nearly 70% of the complaints were coded into one of four: Finance and Billing, Delays, Patient Journey, and Quality of Care. While the results were effective in identifying broad areas of improvement, there were limitations to using the traditional taxonomy in the dental school setting. Based on these data, the RSDM Patient Complaint Taxonomy, specific to the needs of a dental school environment, was created in an effort to gain increased specificity and further enhance quality improvement measures. It is the hope of the research team that this tool will be used across dental schools, opening the door for future collaborations and ultimately improving patient care.