ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Stacy Fletcher, MD, FAAFP; Andrew T. Muck, MPH; Holly Finertie, MPH; Panupong U-thaiwat, PhD; Deborah Y. Kewon, MS; Karen H. San, MS; Jason M. Guardino, DO, MS; Christopher W. Walker, MD; Thea Giboney, MHA; Julie A. Schmittdiel, PhD
Corresponding Author: Stacy Fletcher, MD, FAAFP; The Permanente Medical Group, Department of Medicine, Napa-Solano Area.
Email: Stacy.F.Fletcher@kp.org
DOI: 10.3122/jabfm.2026.260208R1
Keywords: Cross-Sectional Studies, Delivery of Health Care, Health Workforce, Patient Satisfaction, Primary Health Care, Professional Burnout, Quality of Care, Surveys and Questionnaires, Workplace
Dates: Submitted: 5/21/2026; Revised: 8/20/2026; Accepted: 8/31/2026
Status: In Press.
OBJECTIVE: Access to high-quality primary care is critical to population health, and patient experience is a key marker of quality. This study evaluated whether patient experience scores differ between visits with primary care physicians practicing in the RESET (Reward Efficiency, Set Priorities, Empower Teams) model and visits with physicians in a traditional care model.
METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 2025 Care Experience Management patient experience surveys administered after primary care visits across Kaiser Permanente, Northern California. Top-box scores (percentage selecting the highest response) from visits with RESET and traditional physicians were compared. Survey responses were weighted to reflect the surveyed population (N=416,666) and adjusted for patient and visit characteristics.
RESULTS: There were 58,070 survey responses. After weighting, visits with RESET physicians were associated with significantly higher top-box scores on 16 of 19 measures compared with visits with traditional physicians. The largest difference was observed for physician familiarity with medical history (6.7 percentage point difference; 76.7% vs 70.1%; P <.001). After adjustment, differences remained significant for 13 measures. The largest adjusted differences included physician familiarity with medical records (5.8 percentage points), trust in department (4.6 percentage points), and ease of scheduling (3.6 percentage points).
CONCLUSIONS: Visits with physicians practicing in the RESET model were associated with higher patient experience scores across multiple domains. These findings suggest that system-level primary care redesign may improve patient experience alongside previously demonstrated improvements in physician well-being. Future studies should evaluate the impact of RESET on clinical outcomes, utilization, and cost.