Examining the Association Between Chaplain Care and Patient Experience

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Patient Experience Research
• Spiritual Care Studies

Background:

• Growing evidence suggests chaplain care enhances patient/family satisfaction in hospitals.
• The precise impact of chaplain care on objective patient experience metrics requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the association between chaplain care and patient experience.
• To analyze patient experience data from a large academic medical center.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 11,741 patients' electronic medical records and survey responses (2011-2017).
• Inclusion of Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems and Press Ganey survey data.
• Multivariable regression models adjusting for self-rated health and demographics.

Main Results:

• 26.5% of patients received chaplain care; those with lower self-rated health were more likely to receive it.
• Bivariate analysis showed an association between chaplain care and lower likelihood of highest patient experience scores.
• Multivariable models found this association to be nonsignificant after adjusting for covariates.

Conclusions:

• The association between chaplain care and patient experience is complex and not directly linear.
• Initial findings suggesting a negative association were not supported by adjusted analyses.
• Further research is essential to elucidate the nuanced relationship between spiritual care and patient outcomes.