Employee Satisfaction and Patient Experience are Declining, New Report Shows

Healthcare workers are the least satisfied with pay, compared to those in 27 other industries studied, reveals the 2023 Healthcare Experience Trends Report by Qualtrics.

The report also shows that healthcare employees scored lower than other industry employees across the core pillars of employee experience, including engagement, intent-to-stay, and employee experience vs. their expectations.

What's more, only 52% of healthcare employees believe they are paid fairly for the work they do, which is also the lowest score of any industry studied. The pandemic, burnout, and the following attrition took a toll on the healthcare industry as it faces severe staffing challenges. That healthcare workers are not happy with their positions says the fact that only 61% of respondents said they intend to stay in their job.

“2023 is the year our industry makes the lives of everyone healthcare touches easier. It has to be - and we have to revolutionize our approaches. Emotions are running high no matter what industry you are in, which amplifies when things are not easy, and yet people still put their trust in us. We earn that trust when we intentionally listen across channels, use advanced analytics to understand emotion, intensity and intent, and immediately take action on what we hear. The beauty of technology is how it can enable a fuller understanding of human emotions across interactions, which power meaningful, seamless and more loving digital and in-person healthcare experiences,” said Dr. Adrienne Boissy, Chief Medical Officer, Qualtrics.

US Customer Experience Awards 2023

When it comes to employee expectations, 33% of healthcare employees report their experiences meet expectations, which is down six percentage points from the global cross-industry average.

Conversely, 66% of healthcare employees report being engaged, an improvement of two percentage points year over year and about the same as the global cross-industry average.

Patient experience is lagging

While the healthcare industry is among the most trusted by consumers globally, partly due to the nature of the industry, the patient experience is in decline. The report found that hospitals rank amongst the lowest across industries for satisfaction. Seventy-four percent of respondents report being satisfied with their hospital experience compared with the global cross-industry average of 77%.

However, 79% of respondents said they trust hospitals, which places them fourth across 20 industries studied - only electronics makers, hotels, and universities were more trusted.

To help healthcare organizations improve employee satisfaction and patient experience, Qualtrics healthcare experts identified core areas to invest in in 2023.

2023 Healthcare Patient Experience Trends are:

  • Close the loop on feedback to ensure people feel heard
  • Digitize and humanize every experience to make stronger connections
  • Create memorable patient experiences that earn trust
  • Take note of other industries and pave your own way

2023 Healthcare Employee Experience Trends are:

  • Create value for employees to retain top talent
  • Ease the burden on your employees by eliminating process inefficiencies
  • Design inclusive environments with holistic listening strategies.