The effect of nonmodifiable physician demographics on Press Ganey patient satisfaction scores in ophthalmology

Press Ganey patient satisfaction scores are increasingly being used as a physician quality metric. In this retrospective review of over 25,000 patient surveys for 61 ophthalmologists, pediatric ophthalmologists and neuro-ophthalmologists received significantly lower patient satisfaction scores than their peers, suggesting that the problem for which a patient seeks care may affect whether he or she is satisfied with the care received. These findings should be taken into account when considering the validity of Press Ganey scores as an equitable, modifiable measure of physician performance, especially when considering factoring these scores into physician evaluation and reimbursement.