Introduction and Aims
A growing body of literature supports the use of patient‐reported experience measures (PREMs) to monitor the provision of patient‐centred care to people accessing health services. However, there is an absence of research into PREMs in the alcohol and other drugs (AOD) field. The aim of this study was to explore patient experiences of AOD care and to develop a PREM for AOD treatment settings.
Design and Methods
Five focus groups were conducted with people accessing AOD treatment services in New South Wales, Australia (N = 39). Data were analysed using iterative categorisation. A draft PREM was developed based on focus group findings and was modified following a subsequent review by consumers and service providers.
Results
Participants emphasised the importance of timely access to integrated care delivered in a structured program by staff members who genuinely care. Furthermore, participants described positive experiences when services addressed the problems that maintain addiction, held them responsible for themselves and facilitated self‐reflection. The PREM for Addiction Treatment (PREMAT) is a 33‐item measure that captures what participants said regarding their experience of patient‐centred care in AOD treatment.
Discussion and Conclusions
The experiences of people accessing AOD treatment provided useful feedback that can be translated into service improvements and that informed the design of a PREM for AOD treatment settings. Future research is necessary to further investigate the validity of the PREMAT.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.