Complaints as indicators of health care shortcomings: Which groups of patients are affected?

International Journal for Quality in Health Care

Volumn 24, Issue 5, 2012, Pages 476-482

  Schnitzer, Susanne ^a   Kuhlmey, Adelheid ^a   Adolph, Holger ^a   Holzhausen, Julie ^a   Schenk, Liane ^a  

^a CHARITÉ UNIVERSITÄTSMEDIZIN BERLIN   (Germany)

Author keywords

Complaints; Federal Commissioner for Patient Issues; Health policies; Physician patient relationship; Social determinants

Indexed keywords

ADULT; AGED; ARTICLE; CHRONIC DISEASE; CLINICAL INDICATOR; CONTENT ANALYSIS; DOCTOR PATIENT RELATION; FEMALE; GERMANY; HEALTH CARE POLICY; HEALTH CARE SYSTEM; HEALTH INSURANCE; HUMAN; MALE; MORBIDITY; OUTCOME ASSESSMENT; PRIORITY JOURNAL; QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS; TREATMENT REFUSAL;

ADOLESCENT; ADULT; AGE FACTORS; AGED; AGED, 80 AND OVER; CHRONIC DISEASE; FEMALE; GERMANY; HUMANS; LOGISTIC MODELS; MALE; MIDDLE AGED; NATIONAL HEALTH PROGRAMS; PATIENT SATISFACTION; PHYSICIAN-PATIENT RELATIONS; POLICY; QUALITY OF HEALTH CARE; REFUSAL TO TREAT; SEX; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; YOUNG ADULT;

EID: 84866410738     PISSN: 13534505     EISSN: 14643677     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1093/intqhc/mzs036     Document Type: Article

References (28)

1. European Commission. Summary paper on common principles of care, from the mapping exercise of the high level group on health care service. 2006. Reference: HLG/CBH/2006.
2. Lister G, Rosleff F, Boudioni M, Dekkers F, Jakubowski E, Favelle H. Handling complaints in health and social care: international lessons for England. Report of the "Evidence Consulting of Copenhagen". Denmark: National Audit Office (NAO), 2008.
3. Schneider N, Dierks M-L, Seidel G, Schwartz FW. The federal government commissioner for patient issues in Germany: initial analysis of the user inquiries. BMC Health Serv Res 2007;7.
4. Kuosmanen L, Kaltiala-Heino R, Suominen S et al. Patient complaints in Finland 2000-2004: a retrospective register study. J Med Ethics 2008;34:788-92.
5. Bismark MM, Brennan TA, Paterson RJ et al. Relationship between complaints and quality of care in New Zealand: a descriptive analysis of complainants and non-complainants following adverse events. Qual Saf Health Care 2006;15:17-22.
6. Montini T, Noble AA, Stelfox HT. Content analysis of patient complaints. Int J Qual Health Care 2008;20:412-20.
7. Scott DJ. Understanding and coping with complaints: a clinician's view. Curr Paediatr 2003;13:376-81.
8. Born PH, Query TJ. Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) performance and consumer complaints: an empirical study of frustrating HMO activities. Hosp Top 2004;62:2-9.
9. Marjoribanks T, Delrecchio, Good MJ et al. Physicians' discourses on malpractice and meaning of medical malpractice. J Health Soc Behav 1996;37:163-78.
10. Mulcahy L. From fear to fraternity: doctors' construction of accounts of complaints. J Soc Welfare Fam Law 1996;18: 397-412.
11. Gal I, Doron I. Informal complaints on health services: hidden patterns, hidden potentials. Int J QualHealth Care 2007;19: 158-63.
12. Tapper R, Malcom L, Frizelle F. Surgeons' experiences of complaints to the Health and Disability Commissioner. N Z Med J 2004;117:1-11.
13. Schlesinger M, Mitchell S, Elbel B. Voices unheard: barriers to expressing dissatisfaction to health plans. Milbank Q 2002;80: 709-55.
14. Burstin HR, Johnson WG, Lipsitz SR, Brennan TA. Do the poor sue more? A case-control study of malpractice claims and socioeconomic status. JAMA 1993;270:1697-701.
15. Sager M, Voeks S, Drinka P, Langer E, Grimstad P. Do the elderly sue physicians? Arch Intern Med 1990;150:1091-93.
16. Schnitzer S, Kuhlmey A, Balke K, Litschel A, Walter A, Schenk L. Knowledge and evaluation of health-system reforms as reflected in social determinants. Results of the 2009 survey by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (abstract in English). Gesundheitswesen 2011;73:153-61.
17. Schenk L, Schnitzer S, Adolph H, Holzhausen J, Matheis E, Kuhlmey A. Are complaints an element for health care monitoring? Analysis of the user statistics of the Federal Commissioner for Patient Issues between 2004 and 2007. Gesundheitswesen 2012;74:3-11.
18. SPSS Inc. SPSS base 14.0 user's guide. Chicago: SPSS Inc, 2005.
19. Hofmann W, Maaz A, Nordheim J, Winter MHJ, Kuhlmey A. High utilization of health care services. Different forms and multiple causes. Biom J 2004;46:47.
20. Williams D, Bennett K, Feely J. Evidence for an age and gender bias in the secondary prevention of ischaemic heart disease in primary care. Br J Clin Pharmacol 2003;55:604-08.
21. Goulding MR. Inappropriate medication prescribing for elderly ambulatory care patients. Arch Intern Med 2004;164:305-12.
22. Zhan C, Sangl J, Bierman AS et al. Potentially inappropriate medication use in the community-dwelling elderly. JAMA 2001;286:2823-29.
23. Piecoro LT, Browning SR, Prince TS, Ranz TT, Scutchfield FD. A database analysis of potentially inappropriate drug use in an elderly Medicaid population. Pharmacotherapy 2000;20:221-28.
24. Schmiedl S, Szymanski J, Rottenkolber M, Hasford J, Thürmann PA. Age- and gender-specific incidence of hospitalisation for digoxin intoxication. Drug Saf 200a;30:1171-3.
25. Hippius M, Hegenbart U. Drug-induced gastrointestinal disorders in surgical patients admitted to the University Hospital Jena, Germany. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther 2005;43:406-10.
26. Kassenärztliche Bundesvereinigung. Survey of insurees by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians 2008. Results of a representative population survey (in German). Mannheim: FGW Forschungsgruppe Wahlen Telefonfeld GmbH, 2008.
27. Lungen M, Stollenwerk B, Messner P, Lauterbach KW, Gerber A. Waiting times for elective treatments according to insurance status: a randomized empirical study in Germany. Int J Equity Health 2008;7:1-7.
28. Schnitzer S, Richter S, Walter A, Balke K, Kuhlmey A. Evaluation of the outpatient health system in Germany from the viewpoint of insurees. Results of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians Survey 2008 - Part 1 (in German). Gesundheits- und Sozialpolitik 2008;5:11-20.