HEALTH CARE SURVEY SHOWS PATIENT SATISFACTION IS ON THE

							                                                                                 MEDIA RELEASE

October 4, 2006

          HEALTH CARE SURVEY SHOWS PATIENT SATISFACTION IS ON THE RISE
                    Access still a primary area of dissatisfaction

(Calgary, AB) – According to survey results released today by the Health Quality Council of
Alberta (HQCA), 57 per cent of patients who personally received health care services in Alberta
in the past year were clearly satisfied, rating their experience as 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale. This is a
statistically significant increase from 51 per cent in a survey conducted two years ago. However,
15% of Albertans are clearly dissatisfied with the health care services they received. This is
unchanged from 2004. Access to health care services remains by far the most important driver of
Albertans’ satisfaction with health care services received in the province. Forty-six per cent
(46%) of Albertans who used the system found it clearly easy to obtain health services, rating
their experience as 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale. This is virtually unchanged from 45% in 2004.

Satisfaction with Health Care Services: A Survey of Albertans 2006 measured responses from
more than 4,700 Albertans on their perceptions of and experiences with overall quality,
satisfaction and access with specific health services both provincewide and within each of the
nine health regions. It is the third such study conducted by the HQCA since 2003.

“We know our health care system is one of the best in the world but there is always room for
improvement,” says chief executive officer Dr. John Cowell. “The Health Quality Council of
Alberta is committed to collaborating and working with health regions, health professions,
educators and other stakeholders to achieve world-class excellence in all dimensions of quality
and safety across the Alberta health system. The information that results from this study helps set
us on a course to reach that vision. It is clear from the perspective of the citizens of Alberta that
the system is improving but there is still a lot of work to be done.”

The Council’s independent survey of 4,780 Albertans over the age of 18 compares the 2006
results with those from 2003 and 2004. Some areas showed improvement while others remain
virtually the same from 2004. No significant negative changes occurred at a provincial level in
2006 compared to 2004.

While access is the main factor Albertans associate with overall satisfaction with health care
services, there are other factors also associated with overall satisfaction. They are:

    •   Co-ordination of care – 45% of Albertans rate health care professionals’ efforts to co-
        ordinate care to serve patient needs as excellent or very good, down 2% from 2004.
    •   Complaint reports – 14% of Albertans have reported a serious complaint about health
        care services received as compared to 16% in 2004.
    •   Finding a family doctor – 70% of respondents said it was easy to find their personal
        family doctor compared to 72% in 2004.

These are the areas that Albertans have identified as priority themes to improve their overall
satisfaction with the health care system.

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Additional findings include:

    •   Satisfied with pharmacist services – 94% of those surveyed who have received advice or
        prescription medication from a pharmacist in the past year express satisfaction with
        services received.
    •   Satisfied with chiropractic services - 90% of Albertans who received chiropractic
        services in the past year are satisfied with the services received.
    •   Satisfied with family doctor services – 84% of those surveyed who had an appointment
        with their family doctor are clearly satisfied with the services they received, unchanged
        from 2004 results.
    •   Satisfied with specialist services – 80% of Albertans who have received specialist
        services in the past year say they are satisfied with the services received, a significant 7%
        gain from 2004.
    •   Satisfied with mental health care services – 71% of Albertans who received mental health
        services in the past year are satisfied with the services personally received.
    •   Satisfied with emergency department services – 53% of Albertans who received
        emergency department services in the past year are satisfied with the services received.

The incidence of unexpected harm remains consistent with 2004 levels.

    •   Unexpected harm – 12% of Albertans reported that they or a family member experienced
        unexpected harm while receiving health care in Alberta in the past year, compared to
        13% in 2004.

Ipsos Reid conducted the telephone survey over a two-month period and included respondents
from across the nine health regions. Statistical weights were applied to ensure the data is
representative of each health region’s population. The margin of error for the province is ±1.42%
19 times out of 20.

“Over the next few weeks, we’ll be meeting with each of the health regions as well as other
stakeholder groups to discuss the findings and where to go from here,” says Cowell. “Together
we will identify provincewide initiatives to improve the quality and safety of Alberta’s health
care system.”

The Health Quality Council of Alberta is an independent organization legislated under the
Regional Health Authorities Act that is engaged in gathering knowledge and collaborating with
stakeholders to translate that knowledge into practical actions that can improve the quality, safety
and performance of Alberta’s health system.

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For more information, please contact:
Karen Fantin                                      Pam Brandt
403-241-3956 office                               HQCA
403-815-4883 cell                                 403-297-4091 office
k.fantin@shaw.ca                                  403-850-5067 cell
                                                  pam.brandt@hqca.ca

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                                                                          BACKGROUNDER

         Satisfaction with Health Care Services: A Survey of Albertans 2006

Survey highlights:

    •   57% of patients who personally received health care services in Alberta in the past year
        were clearly satisfied, rating their experience as 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale. This is a
        statistically significant increase from 51% in 2004.
    •   46% of Albertans who used the system found it clearly easy to obtain health services,
        rating their experience as 4 or 5 on a 5-point scale. This is virtually unchanged from 45%
        in 2004.
    •   While access is the main factor Albertans associate with overall satisfaction with health
        care services, there are other factors also associated with overall satisfaction:
                 45% of Albertans rate how well health care professionals co-ordinated their
                 efforts to serve patient needs as excellent or very good as compared to 47% in
                 2004.
                 14% of Albertans have reported a serious complaint about health care services
                 received as compared to 16% in 2004.
                 70% of those surveyed said it was easy to find their present personal family
                 doctor compared to 72% in 2004.
                 84% of Albertans who have a personal family doctor are clearly satisfied with the
                 services they received. This is unchanged from 2004.
                 12% of those surveyed reported they or a family member experienced
                 unexpected harm while receiving health care in Alberta over the past year. This is
                 virtually unchanged from 13% in 2004.


How the survey was done?

    •   Ipsos Reid, the independent research company that conducted the 2003 and 2004 surveys
        was commissioned to do the 2006 survey.
    •   In December 2005, formal pilot tests were conducted among 98 Albertans across the
        province before the questionnaire was finalized.
    •   4,780 telephone interviews were conducted with Albertans over the age of 18.
    •   Statistical weights were applied to ensure the data is representative of each region’s
        population.
    •   The margin of error for the province is ±1.42% 19 times out of 20.


Significant changes:

No significant negative changes occurred at a provincial level in 2006 compared to 2004. Areas
reporting an improvement of 10 or more percentage points include:

    •   Satisfaction – hospital care provided to a family member
    •   Access – diagnostic imaging
    •   Family doctors – help from other staff that assists your doctor

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    •   Community walk-in clinics – help from staff assisting the doctors at the clinic
    •   Specialist services – wait time for specialist to review required test results and wait time
        to get in to see the specialist
    •   Hospital services (close family member) – hospital staff treating family member with
        courtesy and respect, follow up care provided after discharge from the hospital and
        contact made with other services or agencies needed after leaving the hospital


Access to health care services:

    •   In 2006, 26% of Albertans perceived that access to needed health care services is easy.
        This is a significant increase from 21% in 2004. Forty-six per cent (46%) of those who
        have actually obtained health care services in the past year say they were easy to access.
        There is a 20% gap between Albertan’s general perceptions and actual experiences when
        it comes to access. This would indicate that access to health care is easier than people
        generally think.
    •   To improve overall ratings of access to Alberta’s health care system, there are five
        priority areas:
             1. Co-ordination of efforts of health care professionals
             2. Access to family doctor services
             3. Incidence of serious complains
             4. Incidence of minor complaints
             5. Ease/difficulty of finding a family doctor
    •   Making improvements in these five areas will in turn increase overall satisfaction levels.


Next steps:

        •     The Health Quality Council of Alberta will be meeting with each of the health
              regions, health professionals and policymakers over the next few months to discuss
              the findings of the 2006 survey and plan initiatives that will further improve the
              quality of Alberta’s health care system.
        •     The success of these efforts will be measured in the next satisfaction survey in 2008.

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