Patient-Reported Experience Measures to Evaluate and Improve the Quality of Care in Nephrology

Patient experience is considered a pillar of high-quality care, integral to patient-centered care, but despite significant policy focus on patient-reported experience measures (PREMs), little is published regarding their development, use, or impact on clinical practice. In nephrology, PREMs are increasingly used in research to capture and quantify patients’ perceptions of their experiences with health care services. It has been shown that a negative patient experience impacts patients’ physical and psychological health, and a small but significant proportion of patients across a selection of settings report their experiences of health care as poor or suboptimal. Evidence of whether PREMs improve quality of care or support person-centered care in the clinical setting remains largely theoretical. Extensive effort has been invested to develop various PREMs for kidney services. Although little evidence linking PREM collection to meaningful change in delivery of care currently exists, work is underway. Early indications are that with the right facilitators, implementing PREMs in routine practice can help providers recognize where change is needed and galvanize transformation. The journey toward understanding the connection between PREM data and modifiable provider characteristics to target and enable change has started, but further evidence is needed. This article outlines the history of PREMs in nephrology and details their current use alongside implementation challenges. The use and benefits of PREMs are discussed before considering the evidence base for their impact on renal health care. Possible next steps for PREMs are suggested and best practices highlighted.