Researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems surveys over five years, focusing on communication. The study took place at a 1,165-bed, tertiary-care, academic medical center and included patients who experienced any type of isolation for at least 50 percent of their stay. Patients who did not experience isolation were controls.
The study shows patients in isolation reported worse experience, primarily with staff responsiveness for time-sensitive needs and overall care, but reported similar experience in other domains.
“The absence of a dose-response effect suggests that isolation status may be a marker for other factors, such as illness severity,” study authors concluded. “Regardless, hospitals should emphasize timely staff response for this population.”
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