The Picker Patient Experience Questionnaire: development and validation using data from in-patient surveys in five countries

Objective. The purpose of this study was to develop and test a core set of questions to measure patients' experiences of in-patient care. Questions were selected from the bank of items developed for use in in-patient surveys undertaken by the Picker Institute for the purposes of assessing the quality of care. Design. The data reported here come from surveys of patients who had attended acute care hospitals in five countries: the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and the USA. Questionnaires were mailed to patients' homes within 1 month of discharge, either to all patients, or to a random sample, discharged during a specified period. Sample. A total of 62 925 questionnaires were returned, with response rates of 65% (UK), 74% (Germany), 63% (Sweden), 52% (Switzerland), and 46% (USA). Results. Fifteen items were selected from the bank of questions included in the Picker in-patient questionnaires. These items have a high degree of face validity and when summed to an index they show a high degree of construct validity and internal reliability consistency. Discussion. Fifteen items derived from the longer form Picker in-patient survey have been found to provide a meaningful picture of patient experiences of health care, and constitute the 15-item Picker Patient Experience Questionnaire. These questions comprise a core set that should be measured in all in-patient facility surveys. The Picker Patient Experience Questionnaire represents a step forward in the measurement of patient experience as it provides a core set of questions around which further optional modules may be added. Scores are easy to interpret and actionable. Conclusion. This small set of questions could be incorporated into in-patient surveys in different settings, enabling the comparison of hospital performance and the establishment of national or international benchmarks.