Authors: Anish K. Agarwal, David A. Asch, Jeffrey Millstein
Submitted by: Janice Radway, The Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

A passenger is pinged moments after exiting their rideshare vehicle with a request to “rate your driver” using a simple 5-star rating. A few extra typed comments offer detail and context — completed in just moments. The same person, now exiting a doctor's appointment, receives no such alert. Instead, weeks later, they receive a mailed survey consisting of 30, or more, questions spanning a range of content: getting an appointment, interactions with the reception staff, communication by the clinician, and the cleanliness of facilities. It's not just that the survey relies on an ability to recall and report on these long-ago interactions and how they felt—it’s likely the response is the only item that person will physically mail in weeks, if in the end it is mailed at all. In an increasingly digital world where real-time ratings and just-in-time feedback have become routine across a variety of industries, how can healthcare adapt and evolve?

Read the authors’ case for digital surveying in the Journal of Patient Experience here.

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