Why Physician Partnership Is the Future of Patient Experience in Pediatrics
Patient experience leaders know this dilemma well.
You can design the best surveys. You can implement the right rounding tools. You can track the right metrics. And still…you may struggle to gain meaningful physician engagement.
That’s because many patient experience (PX) efforts were built on compliance-based models—approaches that ask physicians to follow the program rather than help shape it. Over time, that dynamic contributes to disengagement, frustration, and a perception that PX is something being done to physicians instead of with them.
At the 2026 NRC Health Pediatric Collaborative in Orlando, leaders from Phoenix Children’s Hospital will share how they’re rethinking this model entirely, in the session “Unleashing the Power of Physician Partnership: What PX Needs Now.”
The session will explore strategies for redesigning PX around authentic partnership. And for pediatric organizations, this mindset shift may be one of the most powerful levers available to improve patient experience, quality, and safety simultaneously.
Physician Partnership Is a PX Strategy, Not a Culture Initiative
We often talk about physician engagement as a wellness issue or leadership topic. Phoenix Children’s makes a compelling case that it is, fundamentally, a patient experience strategy.
When physicians are engaged, supported, and involved in shared governance, some important things happen:
- Communication improves
- Trust between teams increases
- Data becomes a tool for improvement rather than a report card
- Psychological safety allows teams to speak up and innovate
- Patients and families feel the difference in every interaction
But when PX is positioned as compliance, checklists, scripts, or mandated behaviors, it creates the opposite effect: disengagement that quietly undermines outcomes.
This session explores the limitations of traditional PX models and shows how Phoenix Children’s moved toward co-creation with physicians as a sustainable path forward.
Learning from Leaders Who Bridge Experience and Clinical Practice
This conversation is grounded in real operational and clinical leadership.
Andréa Aken’Ova, M.B.A., Director, Patient Family Experience, Phoenix Children’s Hospital
Aken’Ova brings a systems and strategy lens to experience improvement, shaped by roles in digital strategy at CommonSpirit Health and operational leadership at Mercy Health. Her work focuses on advancing person- and family-centered care through practical, data-informed strategies that work in large, complex healthcare environments.
Her current doctoral research at Johns Hopkins University centers on provider engagement and pediatric patient experience improvement, making this topic both a professional practice and an academic focus.
Dana I. Williams, M.D., Medical Director of Patient Experience, Phoenix Children’s Hospital
A practicing pediatric gastroenterologist and nationally recognized leader in aerodigestive and pediatric feeding disorders, Dr. Williams bridges clinical credibility and patient experience leadership in a rare and powerful way. Since 2023, she has served as Medical Director of Patient Experience for the enterprise while continuing her clinical and academic work.
Her leadership of multidisciplinary care programs and deep commitment to patient- and family-centered care bring a physician’s perspective to what true partnership in PX looks like in practice.
Together, Aken’Ova and Williams offer a perspective that many organizations are still trying to figure out: how PX and physicians can move forward as partners rather than on parallel tracks.
The Shift: From Compliance-Based PX to Partnership-Driven PX
Participants in this session will explore:
- How physician engagement, communication, and well-being directly influence patient experience, quality, and safety
- Why compliance-based PX models often lead to physician disengagement
- What authentic physician partnership actually looks like in practice, including such factors as:
- Co-creation
- Shared governance
- Data transparency
- Psychological safety
- How Phoenix Children’s applied these principles to create sustainable improvement
Attendees will walk away with a blueprint for a mindset shift that many pediatric organizations urgently need.
Why This Especially Matters in Pediatric Care
Pediatric care is inherently family-centered, team-based, and emotionally complex. Physicians in this environment are navigating:
- High-acuity cases
- Multidisciplinary coordination
- Emotional demands from families
- Increasing documentation and operational burden
In this setting, physician disengagement doesn’t just affect morale. It directly affects the experience of children and families too.
By focusing on physician partnership, Phoenix Children’s demonstrates how improving the caregiver experience can become a direct pathway to improving the patient and family experience.
This session is especially valuable for:
- Patient experience leaders who are struggling with physician engagement
- Physician leaders who are looking to influence PX in a meaningful way
- Pediatric executives seeking sustainable improvement strategies
- Quality, safety, and operations leaders who recognize the connection between engagement and outcomes
- Anyone responsible for culture, governance, or clinical collaboration in pediatric settings
NRC Health is thrilled to partner with Nemours Children’s Health for the 2026 Pediatric Collaborative March 25–26.
NRC Health’s Pediatric Collaborative brings pediatric leaders together to connect, learn, and feel inspired to create change. Strengthen your network, deepen your expertise, and spark new motivation—powered by inspiring speakers. Register today!
