41.7% of Healthcare Workers Cite "Staff Shortages" as the Main Obstacle to Improving Patient Experience
Key facts
- 41.7% of Healthcare Workers Cite "Staff Shortages" as the Main Obstacle to Improving Patient Experience
- A survey of 400 healthcare workers by APOSTRO Inc. reveals that staff shortages (41.73%) are the primary barrier to improving patient experience. While clinicians recognize the issues, resource constraints hinder progress.
- Source: PR Times
- Date: June 3, 2026
Direct answer
A survey of 400 healthcare workers by APOSTRO Inc. reveals that staff shortages (41.73%) are the primary barrier to improving patient experience. While clinicians recognize the issues, resource constraints hinder progress.
- Citation
- 41.7% of Healthcare Workers Cite "Staff Shortages" as the Main Obstacle to Improving Patient Experience (June 3, 2026), PR Times
- Source
- PR Times
- Date
- June 3, 2026
A survey of 400 healthcare workers by APOSTRO Inc. reveals that staff shortages (41.73%) are the primary barrier to improving patient experience. While clinicians recognize the issues, resource constraints hinder progress.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: June 3, 2026 at 17:30
- 🔍 Collected: June 3, 2026 at 08:50
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: June 3, 2026 at 09:01 (10 min after Collected)
APOSTRO Inc. has previously conducted surveys among general consumers regarding the selection of medical institutions and their clinical visit experiences. Results showed that 45.6% were unable to adequately compare medical institutions when needing urgent care, and 39.7% cited not knowing if they could be seen immediately as a major difficulty.
Investigations into clinical visits, accounting, and payment also highlighted challenges throughout the patient journey, such as stress from waiting times, lack of clear information, and inconvenient payment experiences.
In a recent survey of 400 healthcare workers, 49.61% perceived that patients feel dissatisfied with waiting times, and 46.19% felt that medical institution information is not sufficiently communicated. This suggests that the challenges identified by consumers are also well-recognized on the front lines.
Meanwhile, when asked why improvements are difficult despite the recognized need, "staff shortages" (41.73%) and "cost constraints" (39.63%) emerged as the top reasons. This indicates that while there is a consensus on the problems,現場 constraints make progress difficult.
Combined with previous survey results, it is suggested that challenges exist across various phases—information acquisition, clinic visits, accounting, and payment—indicating that patient experience issues are structural and span multiple phases.
■ Key Highlights of the Survey
● Approximately half recognize patient dissatisfaction with waiting times (49.61%)
49.61% responded that they recognize patients are dissatisfied with waiting times. Other widely recognized issues include insufficient communication of information (46.19%) and a high volume of urgent care seekers (42.26%).
● Operational efficiency leads to reduced burden (66.14%)
66.14% of respondents agreed that streamlining accounting and payment processes leads to reduced operational burden. There is a clear consensus on the direction of necessary improvements.
● Staff shortages are the biggest barrier to improvement (41.73%)
Reasons cited for difficulties in implementation include staff shortages (41.73%), cost constraints (39.63%), and medical system rules (25.72%), suggesting a gap between problem recognition and execution.
■ About the Survey
This report presents a preliminary summary of the findings. Detailed results for each question are available in the simultaneously published note article.
[Survey Overview]
Target: Healthcare workers aged 20 to 80 nationwide
Method: Internet survey
Period: April 6–7, 2026
Valid responses: 400
Conducted by: APOSTRO Inc.
Investigations into clinical visits, accounting, and payment also highlighted challenges throughout the patient journey, such as stress from waiting times, lack of clear information, and inconvenient payment experiences.
In a recent survey of 400 healthcare workers, 49.61% perceived that patients feel dissatisfied with waiting times, and 46.19% felt that medical institution information is not sufficiently communicated. This suggests that the challenges identified by consumers are also well-recognized on the front lines.
Meanwhile, when asked why improvements are difficult despite the recognized need, "staff shortages" (41.73%) and "cost constraints" (39.63%) emerged as the top reasons. This indicates that while there is a consensus on the problems,現場 constraints make progress difficult.
Combined with previous survey results, it is suggested that challenges exist across various phases—information acquisition, clinic visits, accounting, and payment—indicating that patient experience issues are structural and span multiple phases.
■ Key Highlights of the Survey
● Approximately half recognize patient dissatisfaction with waiting times (49.61%)
49.61% responded that they recognize patients are dissatisfied with waiting times. Other widely recognized issues include insufficient communication of information (46.19%) and a high volume of urgent care seekers (42.26%).
● Operational efficiency leads to reduced burden (66.14%)
66.14% of respondents agreed that streamlining accounting and payment processes leads to reduced operational burden. There is a clear consensus on the direction of necessary improvements.
● Staff shortages are the biggest barrier to improvement (41.73%)
Reasons cited for difficulties in implementation include staff shortages (41.73%), cost constraints (39.63%), and medical system rules (25.72%), suggesting a gap between problem recognition and execution.
■ About the Survey
This report presents a preliminary summary of the findings. Detailed results for each question are available in the simultaneously published note article.
[Survey Overview]
Target: Healthcare workers aged 20 to 80 nationwide
Method: Internet survey
Period: April 6–7, 2026
Valid responses: 400
Conducted by: APOSTRO Inc.
FAQ
What are the main reasons healthcare providers find it difficult to improve patient experience?
The most common answer is 'labor shortage' (41.73%), followed by 'cost constraints' (39.63%).
How do healthcare providers perceive patient wait times?
49.61% of surveyed healthcare providers believe that patients are dissatisfied with wait times.
What is the perceived impact of streamlining billing and payment processes on the field?
66.14% of respondents believe that streamlining billing and payment processes would reduce the burden on the field.
Who were the subjects and when was the survey conducted?
The survey was conducted online from April 6 to April 7, 2026, targeting 400 healthcare providers aged 20 to 80 nationwide.
How are the challenges in patient experience categorized?
Challenges exist in various phases such as information acquisition, outpatient visits, billing, and payment, suggesting a structural issue spanning multiple phases.