SPX Talks: Innovating with Purpose, Patients and Caregivers as Real Drivers of Change
Watch the replay of our SPX Talk in Spanish from February 11 with Silvia Millat Servent from Hospital de Bellvitge, who presented “DAIPO project : Patient and Caregiver, Two Essential Voices in Patient Experience Projects“. The session was moderated by Patricia Ripoll Ros.
During this session, Silvia Millat spoke about how patient experience can become a true lever for organizational transformation.
The discussion focused on the DAIPO project, an innovation initiative funded through the European Next Generation program and developed within the Catalan healthcare system. The project combines three dimensions simultaneously: process redesign, patient experience, and technology.
DAIPO includes 14 care areas — including dementia, rehabilitation, and hemodialysis — where healthcare teams use methodologies such as design thinking and Lean Management. One major shift compared to previous initiatives is that patient and caregiver feedback is integrated directly into the redesign of care pathways, rather than being collected afterward.
A central theme of the conversation was the importance of including caregivers, especially in chronic and complex conditions such as dementia. Through focus groups, professionals discovered realities they had never fully considered before: caregivers afraid to ask questions in front of the patient, emotional exhaustion, feelings of isolation, and uncertainty about the future.
These discussions led to several concrete improvements:
- peer-support initiatives pairing experienced caregivers with new caregivers,
- better communication around diagnoses,
- resource guides connecting families with local support organizations,
- redesigned care pathways to improve coordination and efficiency.
Silvia Millat emphasized that meaningful change only happens when professionals are directly involved and able to hear patient stories firsthand. According to her, listening to real experiences helps overcome resistance to change far more effectively than reports or surveys alone.
The conversation also addressed the risk of “patient washing” — involving patients symbolically without creating real impact. To avoid this, the project focused on voluntary engagement, strong clinical leadership, integration into daily practice, and continuous feedback to participants.
Another key lesson was the importance of “closing the loop.” Patients and caregivers who contribute to projects must see the results of their participation. DAIPO therefore includes phases for identifying needs, co-designing solutions, testing pilots, and measuring outcomes, with plans to present concrete impact data to participants in a dedicated event.
Finally, the session highlighted that participation itself has value. Many patients and caregivers expressed high satisfaction simply because they felt heard for the first time. Focus groups also created unexpected peer connections between people facing similar challenges, helping reduce feelings of isolation.
The session concluded with a clear message: patient experience is not about listening for appearance’s sake — it is about listening in order to transform healthcare.
SPX Talks: Wednesdays for Patient Experience
The SPX Talks are short, free, online discussions with a key player in the field of patient experience, enabling you to find out more and exchange views on a range of subjects. Check out the schedule of upcoming guests on the SPX Talks page!
