Can communication skills workshops for emergency department doctors improve patient satisfaction?

Objective-To assess whether the attending of the communication skills works hops by the emergency department doctors improves patient satisfaction and reduces the number of complaints on doctors' attitude. Method-Standard performas were sent to all emergency departments (EDs) in D ong Kong soliciting their numbers of written complaints on doctors' attitud e or communication problems during the nine months before and after a serie s of communication skills workshops. Patient satisfaction surveys in four r epresentative EDs, before and after the workshops, were collected and the s atisfaction rates of doctors attitude, explanation and advice were subseque ntly compared. Results-For the hospitals that responded, written complaints against doctor s' attitude reduced from 26 (1 January 1995 to 30 September 1995) to 15 (1 July 1996 to 31 March 1997), amounting to a 42% reduction despite an increa se of attendance from 724 000 to 898 000 (p = 0.05 chi(2)) From the 663 and 480 questionnaires collected before and after the workshops respectively, the satisfaction rate to doctors attitude increases from 88.3% before to 98 % after the workshops, while the satisfaction rate to explanation and advic e provided by doctors increases from 79.8% to 93.8%. Conclusion-Communication skills workshops in Hong Kong can improve ED docto rs communication skills with a corresponding increase in patient satisfacti on and reduction of complaints against ED doctors.