The impact of Hospital Accreditation on the patient's Experience of Hemodialysis Department: A Case Study

The excellence of hospital Hemodialysis Department (HD) Service is the one of the most 
relevant items of health care quality perceived by patients and by their families. Patients 
experience is considered a way of measuring the quality of services provided. Objectives: To 
study the impact of National Accreditation Board for Hospitals & Healthcare Providers 
(NABH) Accreditation, India  on the patients experience of Hemodialysis Department 
services. Methods: It is a quantitative, descriptive and inferential research based case study in 
which sample of a population was studied by  structured patients experience survey 
questionnaires (before and after the accreditation) in a private tertiary care hospital at 
Secunderabad, Telangana State, India to determine its characteristics, and it is then inferred 
that the population has the same or different characteristics. Significance of Research: It was 
observed initially before the accreditation that there was a lower patient’s experience rate of 
the hospital Hemodialysis Department Services, which was affecting the study hospitals’ 
business. Hypothesis: Null Hypothesis (Ho) and Alternative Hypothesis (H1) were used and 
tested to compare the before and after impact of accreditation by applying to each question in 
the questionnaire. Study Design: The closed ended questionnaire was developed considering 
the Hemodialysis Department Services by incorporating the six dimensions of quality Safe, 
Timely, Effective, Efficient, Equitable, and Patient-centred (STEEP) and tested prior to 
implementing. Questionnaires were given to the patients' families for completion upon using 
the Hemodialysis Department Services two  months before and two months after the 
accreditation. The data were collected in order to cover all three shifts of the Hemodialysis 
Department Services. Study Population: Simple random sampling method was selected; the 
researcher had involved all conscious patients (clinical conditions) from all age groups. Data 
Collections:  Primary data were collected from the survey questionnaires. Secondary data 
were collected from relevant published journals, articles, research papers, academic literature 
and web portals.  Conclusion: The patient’s experience score has improved from before 
accreditation compared to after accreditation which indicated that the accreditation has a 
positive impact on the patient’s experience of Haemodialysis Department Services of the 
study hospital.