Patient-centeredness and its impact on patient satisfaction and treatment outcomes in medical rehabilitation

Objective: To examine the impact of patient-centeredness for patient satisfaction and treatment outcomes. Method: A multicenter cross-sectional survey study with patients (n = 1033) in nine medical rehabilitation centers in Germany was conducted. Data was analyzed with multiple linear regression. Predictors were patient-centeredness (CCRQ-15) and patient's age, employment and therapeutic indication; outcomes were patient satisfaction and treatment outcomes (changes in living conditions and health status). Results: The regression model could explain 54% of variance in patient satisfaction. The strongest predictor was decision-making/communication (beta = 0.34). In treatment outcome, 19% of variance of changes in living conditions and 21% of variance of changes in state of health could be explained. The strongest predictor in both variables was self-management/empowerment (beta = 0.40 and 0.32, respectively). Conclusion: The results emphasize the relevance of patient-centered treatments for patient satisfaction and treatment results. The evidence is provided for the first time in medical rehabilitation. Practice implications: Further studies should consider multilevel modeling and diverse survey methods. Continued implementation and evaluation of patient-centeredness in the medical rehabilitation treatment are recommended measures. Promoting shared decision-making, effective clinician-patient communication, and increased patient empowerment are essential, e.g. by patient education programs or staff training in shared decision-making. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.