Drivers of Patient Experiences With Healthcare-Based Social Care

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Research
• Social Determinants of Health
• Patient Experience

Background:

• Social care is increasingly integrated into healthcare settings to address patient needs beyond clinical treatment.
• Understanding patient perspectives is vital for optimizing social care interventions and improving health outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify key factors that define patient experiences of social care within healthcare settings.
• To explore the dimensions of social care that most significantly impact patient perceptions and satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative study involving 30 semi-structured interviews with adult participants who received social care in a US healthcare setting within the past year.
• Interviews were conducted between September 2023 and February 2024.
• Data analysis utilized a mixed inductive-deductive approach with dual coding of transcripts.

Main Results:

• Patient experiences of social care are defined by two primary domains: functional and relational.
• Functional aspects include screening, resource connection, and follow-up.
• Relational factors encompass empathy, perceived screening intentions, linguistic concordance, and longitudinal relationships with care teams.

Conclusions:

• Relational factors, including interactions and relationships with social care providers, significantly define patient experiences.
• Healthcare teams should prioritize relational aspects in social care delivery, even when resources are limited.
• Future measures of social care quality must integrate both functional and relational dimensions for comprehensive evaluation.