Delivering results to clients: a question of satisfying needs or desires?

Abstract

Demand for genitourinary (GU) medicine services is outstripping supply. Improving efficiency can modulate the supply side of the equation, e.g. decreasing the number of clients having to return for their results. This survey explored how clients at two central London GU medicine clinics would like to receive their results and their views were reflected against what was offered by London GU medicine clinics. There was a significant difference between the result delivery services that the clients wanted and what the clinics provided (P <0.0001, chi(2)). Of the clients, 92% wanted to know their results regardless of outcome whereas 22% of London clinics would only inform clients of positive results. This study questions the importance and feasibility of patient choice, an important aspect of the National Strategy for Sexual Health and HIV. Clinics may not individually be able to provide choice but between them, they do provide a wide range of alternatives for the client.

Preferred options for receiving sexual health screening results: a population and patient survey

“…Even allowing for this, patients and potential patients expressed a clear preference to receive their results explicitly even if they were negative, which is in accordance with a previous report. 5 Although 'no news is good news' may free clinic resources, reduce costs and improve waiting times it remains generally unacceptable to patients.…”

“…11 Patients views remain an important input to the design of sexual health-care services, 12 including the measurement of satisfaction with new initiatives. 5,13 This study obtained views from STI clinic patients and a community sample on alternative ways of providing results to patients, methods of partner notification and expectations on how long a clinic attendance for STI screening should last.…”

“…The implementation of ‘no news is good news’, where patients are only contacted if their tests reveal a positive result, has been introduced in many clinics to reduce the number of patients requiring follow up, 4 but may not necessarily be acceptable to the patient. 5 Newer technologies have also been suggested as an appropriate way to automate the delivery of results, e.g. text messaging, telephone messaging, internet.…”

‘No one wants to be the face of Herpes London’: a qualitative study of the challenges of engaging patients and the public in sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS services

“…This study highlighted a number of practical issues for conducting SRHH PPE, many of which have been found by other projects. These include the need to be innovative, provide training and information for participants, using mixed methods, in‐depth and personalized methods …”

What service users want: a new clinic results service. Can we satisfy both patients' needs and wants?

“…Recent research has focused on what patients want 1,4 -6 and the introduction of newer technologies such as texting. 1,3,7 Not surprisingly, a paper in 2008 revealed that patients prefer the 'human touch', i.e. prefer telephone and face-to-face contact rather than the newer technologies.…”