Use of a Survey Questionnaire

The patient (a.k.a the client, or the customer) is a valuable information source for feedback to a dental practice on how to improve access to care and treatment services. Use of a well-designed patient survey form can be an invaluable asset to the dentist and the dental staff to obtain meaningful information from the clientele of the practice including receiving kudos for a well-run dental practice.

A favorable survey should include the following features:

Concise questions that address the topics of concern to the practice.
Address only one issue per question to avoid confusing data.
Limit the number of questions to maximize the response rate.
Design a patient response scale that is simple, descriptive, and minimizes ambiguity.
Include essential instructions for completing the survey and returning it to the practice.
Provide space for patients to write comments at the end of the document.
Do not require patients to sign the survey or to identify themselves.
Do indicate the information provided will be managed in a confidential manner.