Severance Hospital Ranks First in National Customer Satisfaction Survey for 13 Consecutive Years

On the 6th, Severance Hospital achieved first place for 13 consecutive years in the hospital medical service sector of the National Customer Satisfaction Index (NCSI) selected by the Korea Productivity Center.

It received high evaluations in 'Patient Value Management,' which prioritizes patient satisfaction as the key indicator of hospital management. Severance Hospital considers not only the time patients spend with medical staff during surgeries and consultations but also the sleep time patients take in the wards as part of the treatment process. The representative program is the 'Honey Sleep Project,' which started in March 2021. It minimized noise generated in the wards for inpatients. Starting with replacing the packaging tape used in the wards with silent tape, noise preventers were installed on toilet lids in the restrooms. The hospital also provides a Honey Sleep Kit (earplugs, sleep mask, inpatient life guide) to help patients sleep well. The aim is to reduce factors that disturb deep sleep to support the rapid recovery and discharge of inpatients.

Medical staff are handing a Honey Sleep Package to a patient.

The 'Escape from Fasting Program' also began from the concern to alleviate difficulties patients face during treatment waiting times. It was common for patients to fast for long hours before tests and procedures. However, this was accompanied by discomforts such as thirst, dry mouth, anxiety, and tension. Severance Hospital reduced fasting times while providing carbohydrate-supplemented drinks to relieve fasting discomfort.

Recently, a multipurpose restroom was installed for patients with stomas and urostomies. These patients need to frequently empty and clean their pouches in the restroom. In general restrooms, the distance between the toilet and sink is long, and the sink is high, making pouch cleaning difficult. Severance Hospital newly established such a multipurpose restroom on the 3rd floor of Yonsei Cancer Hospital to reduce these inconveniences.

The foundation of Severance’s patient value management is the Voice of Customers (VOC). Severance Hospital collects feedback from patients throughout all processes experienced in the hospital. This includes inpatient, outpatient, and emergency room treatments. After treatment, Kakao AlimTalk messages are sent to collect opinions in real time for satisfaction surveys.

Major opinions from satisfaction surveys are regularly discussed at weekly hospital operation meetings. After the meetings, responsible departments are assigned to solve problems, and an organic cooperation system among departments is established so that the entire hospital works together to improve issues.

Ha Jong-won, director of Severance Hospital, said, “Since patient satisfaction leads to treatment outcomes, we always prioritize patient satisfaction as the top hospital management indicator,” and added, “We will enhance patient value management by improving all facilities and services from the patient’s perspective.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.