HFMA VIEWS

Kevin C. (Casey) Nolan
Managing Director, Navigant Consulting, Inc.

On (yet another) long-haul flight across the United States, I read a very interesting article in the Wall Street Journal. I read the Journal every day, looking specifically for non-health care articles that could be applied to health care, as I believe that the health care industry can learn a great deal from the other 85% of the economy. And in this particular issue of the Journal was an article was on a new approach to client satisfaction measurement that GE and other Fortune 500 companies have adopted that focuses on the something called the “net promoter” concept (“Client-Satisfaction Tool Takes Root: GE Embraces Measurement of Customers’ Experience, Winning Back ‘Detractors’” by Kathryn Kranhold, July10, 2006). The concept was inspired by Andrew Taylor, CEO of Enterprise Rent A-Car, who condensed his company’s customer satisfaction survey down to two questions (how likely would you be to use us again? and how likely would you be to refer us to a friend?). GE asks customers to rate how likely they would be to recommend the company to a friend, using a scale of 1-10, with those who rate GE a 9 or 10 being classified as “promoters,” those who rate GE as a 7 or 8 are seen as “passive,” and those who rate the company 6 or below are considered “detractors.” GE calculates a net promoter score by subtracting the detractors from the promoters.

This is a simple, and highly “elegant” (as the engineers like to say) approach to customer/client satisfaction, and one I believe every health care provider should consider. It also reminds me of the words of wisdom I learned from my father many years ago. My dad was a pediatrician and a real pioneer in many respects. I recall asking him one time about a particular hospital and its reputation. His response was a precursor to the net promoter concept and one I have used many times since. He told me that the ultimate test for a hospital or a physician was whether they could pass what he called the “mom test.” The “mom test” was this: ask a physician if s/he would (assuming they had a good relationship with their mom!) send his/her mom to a particular hospital or physician. The answer to that simple question tells you more about a particular provider than even the most elaborate, statistically valid patient satisfaction or consumer preference survey. So the next time your eyes begin to glaze over as you are looking at those massive reports on patient satisfaction scores or consumer image survey results, remember the net promoter concept and the “mom test.” As my mom often counseled—keep it simple. Sometimes—often?—mom does know best!