A Perelman School of Medicine study has revealed that word choice in reviews of healthcare facilities correlates to if the review was positive or negative.
The study, which was conducted over seven years, analyzed over one million online reviews of 139,000 health care facilities across the United States. The results were revealed on Aug. 1 and published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
The study revealed a correlation with the reviewer’s word choice and rating, where four or five stars denoted a positive review and one or two stars denoted a negative one. Researchers discovered that seemingly minor words such as “and,” “told,” and “asked,” as well as “friendly” and “kind,” were significant indicators of a positive review. The research also found that some more negatively charged words — such as “nervous” or “scared” — were found in positive reviews, insinuating that friendly attitudes and increased communication from the healthcare providers were appreciated. Conversely, the words “not,” “said,” and “asked” were indicative of a negative review.
The reviews were left on Yelp, an app that shares public ratings of businesses based on its user’s ratings and feedback. Yelp typically rates local services, restaurants, and shopping — however, Yelp founder and CEO Jeremy Stoppelman was drawn to create his company after a fruitless internet search for reviews of healthcare providers.
9% of Yelp’s reviews fall into the health category — the sixth most popular section on the site.
Penn Medicine’s website allows for patients to leave reviews of doctors in a similar style to Yelp, with a rating system between one and five stars and a place for a statement in their own words.
“Health systems already administer standardized surveys to patients,” first-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Computer and Information Science Neil Sehgal, a lead author of the study, said. “However … giving patients a chance to speak in their own words can help reveal what really matters to them … like kindness, communication, emotional experiences, or frustrations.”
This study aims for quality improvements in the healthcare field. Sehgal added that “one big takeaway is that patients really value how they’re treated as people.”
“Healthcare providers and administrators can use this kind of feedback to improve services that go beyond just medical care, like improving phone systems or making staff more approachable,” he said.
“If we spend more time learning from those doing it well, we can all move forward,” emergency medicine assistant professor and senior author Anish Agarwal said to Penn Medicine.
