Patient-Centered Care in SNFs | SNF Patient Experience

Skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) engage in a daily balancing act. Quality of care for their residents and patients on one hand. Stakeholder pressure for financial performance on the other. Many days, aligning the two seems challenging at best.

Resident- and patient-centered care (PCC) may be the answer to meeting the needs of both parties. This healthcare model embraces a more holistic view of care that goes beyond physical symptoms and includes social, emotional, and mental well-being. Shifting the focus from physician-driven treatment to patient- and resident-centered care strategies produces better health outcomes and higher satisfaction. In turn, those improvements can result in fewer hospitalizations and greater SNF reimbursement potential.

Discover how this approach can deliver positive results for everyone.

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Why Adopt Patient-Centered Care?

Adopting PCC offers numerous advantages.

Improved Patient Outcomes and Reduced Readmissions

Readmissions to the hospital shortly after transitioning can indicate that a patient or resident received subpar care. These events may contribute to an erosion of trust between the individual and their care team and cause emotional, mental, and financial strain for patients, residents, and their families. Those potential outcomes reinforce the importance of enhancing the quality of care in SNFs.

Patient- and resident-centered care helps reduce the chance of readmission in several ways. This model results in better management of chronic conditions, lessening complication rates.

Additionally, the communication improvements and coordinated care that PCC promotes help prevent patient safety issues. Over 160,000 preventable deaths occur in the U.S. annually due to avoidable errors, and medication errors are the primary cause. By supporting more effective communication and coordination among the care team, SNFs can reduce these inaccuracies. PCC also takes an individualized approach to treatment strategies, which may hasten recovery and the transition from SNF to home.

Increased Patient and Family Satisfaction

The skilled nursing facility patient experience is equally as important as the quality of care your center provides. Residents, patients, and their families will tell others about the service they receive. If the experience fails to meet their expectations, negative word of mouth will often result in reputational damage.

PCC helps prevent these outcomes. The approach nurtures stronger relationships between healthcare providers, patients, residents, and their families. The encouragement of shared decision-making and transparent communication fosters higher trust and greater engagement, creating more positive experiences. As a result, your SNF sees better center ratings and reviews, which helps boost admissions and recommendations.

Improve Patient Outcomes

How to Implement Patient-Centered Care in Your SNF

The following steps can help your SNF successfully implement PCC.

1. Build a Culture of Education and Involvement

PCC starts with your people, their buy-in, and their behavior. Invest in training programs that prepare them for the shift to PCC. Help your staff build active listening skills they can bring to each resident or patient interaction. Doing so enables healthcare providers to better understand a patient or resident’s needs and preferences and adjust care plans accordingly.

Encouraging interdisciplinary collaboration is also vital to PCC. Involving every member of the care team upholds coordinated, integrated care for a more holistic approach to well-being.

Additionally, consider establishing advisory councils that allow patients and residents to provide input into center decisions. This feedback supports PCC by giving residents and patients a voice in their environment.

2. Harness Technology for Personalized Care

Technology is a powerful partner for enhancing the quality of care in SNFs. It enables more personalized approaches, supporting the shift to PCC. SNFs have multiple digital tools they can leverage, including:

Electronic Health Records: EHRs provide real-time information to improve communication and collaboration. One survey found that 93% of clinicians reported better communication after adopting EHRs.
Patient or resident portals: Families can use these platforms to communicate with care team members, access information, and participate in decision-making.
Telehealth services: Patients and residents can consult with their healthcare providers and specialists virtually to help reduce hospital visits or transfers.

3. Expand Recreational and Social Programs

Feelings of isolation are not uncommon for SNF patients and residents. These emotions are entirely understandable — patients and residents are experiencing a healthcare event that has disrupted their familiar routines and lifestyles. Residents and patients are also less physically active, with one study reporting that they may spend as much as 92% of their day sedentary. This inactivity further contributes to declining overall well-being.

Consider implementing more recreational and social programs as a key aspect of your PCC model. Additional opportunities to exercise, engage, reconnect, and interact with others help alleviate feelings of depression and isolation, reducing adverse effects. Options include:

Personalized activities that align with resident and patient interests and backgrounds
Music, art, and pet therapy programs
Family engagement activities, such as playing games or eating meals together
Physical movement initiatives aligned with patient or resident mobility and therapy goals

Taking this approach ensures your staff assesses the impacts of a SNF stay more holistically to meet patient and resident needs.

Achieve Patient-Centered Care With First Docs

PCC is a viable solution for enhancing the quality of care in SNFs while driving higher reimbursements. First Docs specializes in providing SNFs with highly skilled physicians who prioritize resident- and patient-centered care. Our physicians are on-site up to five days per week to help your center successfully implement PCC.