One Decade of Online Patient Feedback: Longitudinal Analysis of Data From a German Physician Rating Website

Emmert, Martin; McLennan, Stuart

doi:10.2196/24229

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…A further limitation of the study design is that the search queries were restricted to the 12 largest cities in Germany. Compared to the results from a study by Emmert and McLennan [ 18 ], significantly more reviews were found per profile than what Emmert and McLennan found in 2019, which might indicate a sampling bias [ 18 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

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The Influence of Paid Memberships on Physician Rating Websites With the Example of the German Portal Jameda: Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Armbruster¹,

Brüggmann²,

Groneberg³

et al. 2023

J Med Internet Res

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Background The majority of Germans see a deficit in information availability for choosing a physician. An increasing number of people use physician rating websites and decide upon the information provided. In Germany, the most popular physician rating website is Jameda.de, which offers monthly paid membership plans. The platform operator states that paid memberships have no influence on the rating indicators or list placement. Objective The goal of this study was to investigate whether a physician’s membership status might be related to his or her quantitative evaluation factors and to possibly quantify these effects. Methods Physician profiles were retrieved through the search mask on Jameda.de website. Physicians from 8 disciplines in Germany’s 12 most populous cities were specified as search criteria. Data Analysis and visualization were done with Matlab. Significance testing was conducted using a single factor ANOVA test followed by a multiple comparison test (Tukey Test). For analysis, the profiles were grouped according to member status (nonpaying, Gold, and Platinum) and analyzed according to the target variables—physician rating score, individual patient’s ratings, number of evaluations, recommendation quota, number of colleague recommendations, and profile views. Results A total of 21,837 nonpaying profiles, 2904 Gold, and 808 Platinum member profiles were acquired. Statistically significant differences were found between paying (Gold and Platinum) and nonpaying profiles in all parameters we examined. The distribution of patient reviews differed also by membership status. Paying profiles had more ratings, a better overall physician rating, a higher recommendation quota, and more colleague recommendations, and they were visited more frequently than nonpaying physicians’ profiles. Statistically significant differences were found in most evaluation parameters within the paid membership packages in the sample analyzed. Conclusions Paid physician profiles could be interpreted to be optimized for decision-making criteria of potential patients. With our data, it is not possible to draw any conclusions of mechanisms that alter physicians’ ratings. Further research is needed to investigate the causes for the observed effects.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 73%

“…In general, the number of ratings on physician rating portals increased over time [ 18 ], but profiles with paid memberships have particularly high numbers of ratings. Here a self-reinforcing effect seems possible.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Influence of Paid Memberships on Physician Rating Websites With the Example of the German Portal Jameda: Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

Armbruster¹,

Brüggmann²,

Groneberg³

et al. 2023

J Med Internet Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Despite these limitations, patient rating portals became increasingly popular over the last 10 years [ 8 , 39 ], which suggests that patients claim these portals as a trusted source of information. Beyond a growing number of physicians acknowledging patient reports for in-house quality improvement initiatives [ 40 ], by systematically investigating online reported patient reviews, this analysis provides the potential to integrate patient perspectives into the discussion on how to maintain PCC structures under the stress and strains of a pandemic.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At present, there is insufficient evidence of the extent to which these adjustments influenced PCC in German inpatient rehabilitation clinics. As a growing number of patients use web-based tools to provide feedback on their experience during medical service claims [ 8 ], the aim of this study was to systematically analyze patient experience reports of a clinic rating website in Germany considering patients’ perspectives on how SARS-CoV-2–related adaptation mechanisms affected PCC during inpatient rehabilitation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SARS-CoV-2–Related Adaptation Mechanisms of Rehabilitation Clinics Affecting Patient-Centered Care: Qualitative Study of Online Patient Reports

Kühn¹,

Lindert²,

Kuper³

et al. 2023

JMIR Rehabil Assist Technol

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Background The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic impacted access to inpatient rehabilitation services. At the current state of research, it is unclear to what extent the adaptation of rehabilitation services to infection-protective standards affected patient-centered care in Germany. Objective The aim of this study was to determine the most relevant aspects of patient-centered care for patients in inpatient rehabilitation clinics under early phase pandemic conditions. Methods A deductive-inductive framework analysis of online patient reports posted on a leading German hospital rating website, Klinikbewertungen (Clinic Reviews), was performed. This website is a third-party, patient-centered commercial platform that operates independently of governmental entities. Following a theoretical sampling approach, online reports of rehabilitation stays in two federal states of Germany (Brandenburg and Saarland) uploaded between March 2020 and September 2021 were included. Independent of medical specialty groups, all reports were included. Keywords addressing framework domains were analyzed descriptively. Results In total, 649 online reports reflecting inpatient rehabilitation services of 31 clinics (Brandenburg, n=23; Saarland, n=8) were analyzed. Keywords addressing the care environment were most frequently reported (59.9%), followed by staff prerequisites (33.0%), patient-centered processes (4.5%), and expected outcomes (2.6%). Qualitative in-depth analysis revealed SARS-CoV-2–related reports to be associated with domains of patient-centered processes and staff prerequisites. Discontinuous communication of infection protection standards was perceived to threaten patient autonomy. This was amplified by a tangible gratification crisis of medical staff. Established and emotional supportive relationships to clinicians and peer groups offered the potential to mitigate the adverse effects of infection protection standards. Conclusions Patients predominantly reported feedback associated with the care environment. SARS-CoV-2–related reports were strongly affected by increased staff workloads as well as patient-centered processes addressing discontinuous communication and organizationally demanding implementation of infection protection standards, which were perceived to threaten patient autonomy. Peer relationships formed during inpatient rehabilitation had the potential to mitigate these mechanisms.

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“…The number of websites where patients can publicly share their health care experiences has grown rapidly in recent years [ 1 ]. These web-based platforms are characterized by patients sharing their subjective perceived health experience with the entire web-based community by creating qualitative reviews and quantitative ratings [ 2 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Social Influence on the Intention to Use Physician Rating Websites: Moderated Mediation Analysis Using a Mixed Methods Approach

Guetz¹,

Bidmon²

2022

J Med Internet Res

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Background Physician rating websites (PRWs) have become increasingly important in the cross-section between health and digitalization. Social influence plays a crucial role in human behavior in many domains of life, as can be demonstrated by the increase in high-profile influential individuals such as social media influencers (SMIs). Particularly in the health-specific environment, the opinion of family and friends has a significant influence on health-related decisions. However, so far, there has been little discussion about the role of social influence as an antecedent of behavioral intention to use PRWs. Objective On the basis of theories of social psychology and technology acceptance and theories from the economic perspective, this study aimed to evaluate the impact of social influence on the behavioral intention to use PRWs. Methods We conducted 2 studies by applying a mixed methods approach including a total of 712 participants from the Austrian population. The impact of social influence on the behavioral intention to use PRWs was investigated through linear regression and mediation and moderated mediation analysis using the PROCESS macro 4.0 in SPSS 27 (IBM Corp). Results The 2 studies show similar results. In study 1, an experiment, no direct effect of social influence on the behavioral intention to use PRWs could be detected. However, an indirect effect of social influence on the behavioral intention to use PRWs via credibility (b=0.572; P=.005) and performance expectancy (b=0.340; P<.001) could be confirmed. The results of study 2, a cross-sectional study, demonstrate that social influence seems to have a direct impact on the behavioral intention to use PRWs (b=0.410; P<.001). However, when calculating the proposed mediation model, it becomes clear that this impact may partly be explained through the 2 mediator variables—credibility (b=0.208; P<.001) and performance expectancy (b=0.312; P<.001). In contrast to the observed direct and indirect effect, neither demographic nor psychographic variables have a significant moderating impact on the influencing chain in study 2. Conclusions This study provides an indication that social influence has at least an indirect impact on the behavioral intention to use PRWs. It was observed that this impact is exerted through credibility and performance expectancy. According to the findings of both studies, social influence has the potential to boost the use of PRWs. As a result, these web-based networks might be a promising future interface between health care and digitalization, allowing health care practitioners to gain a beneficial external impact while also learning from feedback. Social influence nowadays is not just limited to friends and family but can also be exerted by SMIs in the domain of PRW use. Thus, from a marketing perspective, PRW providers could think of collaborating with SMIs, and our results could contribute to stimulating discussion in this vein.

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One Decade of Online Patient Feedback: Longitudinal Analysis of Data From a German Physician Rating Website

Cited by 13 publications

References 40 publications

The Influence of Paid Memberships on Physician Rating Websites With the Example of the German Portal Jameda: Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

The Influence of Paid Memberships on Physician Rating Websites With the Example of the German Portal Jameda: Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

SARS-CoV-2–Related Adaptation Mechanisms of Rehabilitation Clinics Affecting Patient-Centered Care: Qualitative Study of Online Patient Reports

The Impact of Social Influence on the Intention to Use Physician Rating Websites: Moderated Mediation Analysis Using a Mixed Methods Approach

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