Abstract TP391: Transition to a Single Dedicated Stroke Unit Improves Patient Satisfaction

Abstract

Introduction: Dedicated inpatient stroke units have been shown to decrease mortality and improve clinical outcomes. There is scant data on patient satisfaction within dedicated stroke units or the perception of care reported by the patient. At a single comprehensive stroke center we recently consolidated two stroke units on different physical locations to a single dedicated stroke unit, located in close proximity to the neuro ICU. We assessed patient satisfaction before and after transitioning to a single dedicated stroke unit. Methods: We analyzed the Press Ganey survey overall satisfaction scores for one year preceding and one year following transition to a single dedicated stroke unit. The overall satisfaction score is rated on a likert scale from 0 - 100. We also analyzed subsection of the Press Ganey survey. An independent samples T-test statistical analysis was used to compare the data. Results: The unified stroke unit was opened on January 1, 2018. We evaluated 177 Press Ganey surveys in the year preceding the transition and 191 surveys in the year following the transition to a single dedicated stroke unit. The overall patient satisfaction was significantly higher in the year after transitioning to single dedicated stroke unit (mean 91.3, SD = 15.7) than in the year prior (mean 87.6, SD = 19.7), [ 95%CI 0.06 - 7.34], p = 0.05. Additionally, after moving the dedicated stroke unit patient care assessment scores in the stroke unit increased and variance decreased (mean 95.5, SD = 8.4) compared to the year prior (mean 85.1, SD = 25.4), although this difference was not statistically significant, p = 0.28. Conclusions: We found that transitioning to a single dedicated stroke unit significantly improved patient satisfaction scores and provided patients with more consistent care.