Opioids Consumed in the Immediate Post-Operative Period Do Not Influence How Patients Rate Their Experience of Care After Total Hip Arthroplasty

Patient perception of care, commonly measured with Press Ganey (PG) surveys, is an important metric used to determine hospital and provider reimbursement. However, post-operative pain following total hip arthroplasty (THA) may negatively affect patient satisfaction. As a result, over-administration of opioids may occur, even without marked evidence of pain. Therefore, this study evaluated whether opioid consumption in the immediate postoperative period bears any influence on satisfaction scores after THA. Specifically, this study assessed the correlation between post-operative opioid consumption and 7 PG domains: (1) Overall hospital rating; (2) Communication with nurses; (3) Responsiveness of hospital staff; (4) Communication with doctors; (5) Hospital environment; (6) Pain Management; and (7) Communication about medicines.

Our institutional PG database was reviewed for patients who received THA from 2011 to 2014. A total of 322 patients (mean age = 65 years; 61% female) were analyzed. Patient’s opioid consumption was measured using a morphine milli-equivalent conversion algorithm. Bivariate correlation analysis assessed the association between opioid consumption and Press-Ganey survey elements. Pearson’s r assessed the strength of the association.

No correlation was found between total opioid consumption and Overall hospital rating (r = 0.004; P = .710), Communication with nurses (r = 0.093; P = .425), Responsiveness of hospital staff (r = 0.104; P = .381), Communication with doctors (r = 0.009; P = .940), Hospital environment (r = 0.081; P = .485), and Pain management (r = 0.075; P = .536). However, there was a positive correlation between total opioid consumption and “Communication about medicines” (r = 0.262; P = .043).

Our report demonstrates that PG patient satisfaction scores are not influenced by post-operative opioid use, with the exception of PG domain, “Communication about medications.” These results suggest that opioid medications should be administered based solely on patient requirements without concern about patient satisfaction survey results.