29 Provider Satisfaction Survey Questions for Better Feedback

Likert Scale Questions

Likert scale questions are your bread and butter if you want to track provider attitudes and see exactly where you stand across a range of touchpoints.

Why and When to Use This Type

If you’re looking to quantify how someone feels about multiple touchpoints, Likert scales are your go-to tool.

They shine in pulse surveys and when you need to check if trends are shooting up or down over time.

Use Likert scale questions:

• When benchmarking satisfaction across specific interactions.

• For fast, easy data that fits snugly on a dashboard.

• To see which areas need high-fives and which need a boost.

Plus, Likert scales are not just for “how do you feel about us?”

You can measure everything from the clarity of your handbooks to the ease of submitting claims.

Sample Likert Scale Questions

1. On a scale from 1,5, how satisfied are you with the clarity of our treatment protocols?

2. Rate your agreement: Support staff respond to my inquiries in a timely manner.

3. The onboarding materials adequately prepared me to use the platform.

4. Billing processes are straightforward and transparent.

5. I feel valued as a partner by [Organization].

You get easily segmentable data that makes your dashboards smile and helps you target your next move.

On top of that, if every item is 4s and 5s, you know you’re cooking.

A validated physician satisfaction survey comprising 13 Likert-type items across three subscales (quality of patient care, ease of practice, and relationship with leadership) demonstrated strong internal consistency (α = .84, .76, .92) (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)

Net Promoter Score (NPS) Questions

If you only have time for one score, Net Promoter Score (NPS) questions give you impact and simplicity in a single shot.

Why and When to Use This Type

NPS is the trusty single-question metric that says it all, asking whether your provider would recommend you to a friend or, in your world, a colleague.

It is perfect when you want to check the temperature at big moments in the relationship.

Here’s the thing with NPS:

• It is a loyalty snapshot you can compare across the entire industry.

• You can fire it off after onboarding, yearly anniversaries, or major service launches.

• You can pair the standard NPS with an open-ended follow-up to dig deep for reasons behind the score.

On top of that, NPS is delightfully easy to chart and segment, so one simple number can unlock a world of insight about advocacy, loyalty, and those moments when your magic really hits home.

Sample NPS-Style Questions

1. How likely are you to recommend collaborating with [Organization] to another provider?

2. Based on your recent experience, how likely are you to renew your partnership?

3. How likely are you to suggest our telehealth platform to colleagues?

4. How likely are you to endorse our supply chain services to peers?

5. How likely are you to participate in future pilot programs with us?

If you score high, give yourself a quick “woohoo” and maybe a victory stretch.

If not, you have a clear place to investigate further and improve what happens next.

Semantic Differential Questions

Semantic differential questions help you capture subtle shades of opinion you will never see in simple yes or no answers.

They bring out the “color” in your feedback, so you can understand how people really feel, not just whether they agree.

Why and When to Use This Type

This format is all about perception, and it measures the space between two opposite adjectives like “easy” and “hard” or “slow” and “fast.”

Think of it as finding out not only whether you are doing well, but how well you are really doing.

Use semantic differentials:

• Best when you are testing reactions to new features or comparing before and after changes, such as during a change readiness survey.

• Lets you create heat maps or visuals that leap off the page.

• Adds nuance to your analysis, making it easy to spot where you are edging toward “awesome” versus hovering in “meh” territory.

Plus, if you run these alongside other question types, you can uncover surprising spots where you are already nailing it or where a tiny tweak could make a huge difference.

Sample Semantic Differential Scales

Sample semantic differential scales give you ready-made question ideas you can plug straight into your survey.

1. Communication with account manager: Unresponsive 1 2 3 4 5 Responsive

2. Claims submission portal: Confusing 1 2 3 4 5 Intuitive

3. Contract negotiation process: Rigid 1 2 3 4 5 Flexible

4. Training resources: Insufficient 1 2 3 4 5 Comprehensive

5. Issue resolution speed: Slow 1 2 3 4 5 Fast

Semantic differentials are quick for providers to complete, and their answers are basically a treasure map for your next round of improvements.

Semantic differential scales in satisfaction surveys capture nuanced provider perceptions, often reducing central tendency bias and revealing clearer insights than Likert scales [e.g., transit study] [source]

Multiple-Choice Attribute Questions

Multiple-choice attribute questions help you quickly see which features matter most and where you’re nailing it (or need to level up).

Why and When to Use This Type

If you want to know exactly which training format is a home run or which portal feature gets eye rolls, multiple-choice questions give you clear answers with no guessing games.

These questions are best when you want direct feedback that you can scan at a glance.

These questions are best when:

• You need fast, easy-to-understand data without the headache of reading pages of comments.

• You’re using online surveys that can branch based on answers (“If they pick X, show them Y!”).

• You want to keep energy high and fatigue low for busy providers.

On top of that, multiple-choice lets your analysis team jump right in with clean data and no messy coding or translation needed, which is about as close to a survey superpower as you can get.

Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

Here are example questions you can plug into your next survey with almost no editing.

1. Which of the following tools do you rely on most? (Select all that apply).

2. What is the primary reason for your partnership with us?

3. Which training format do you prefer?

4. Which communication channels do you find least effective?

5. Which portal features would you like enhanced?

Plus, when you mix in a few multiple-choice options, you get crisp, actionable data points that point straight toward your next innovation and make you look very organized in the process.

Ranking Questions

Ranking questions ask people to pick favorites, so there is no fence-sitting and no safe middle ground. This is how you spot what truly matters most to your audience and what can probably wait its turn.

Why and When to Use This Type

Here’s the thing: When resources are limited (and honestly, when aren’t they?), you need a clear signal on where to focus. Ranking questions push providers to make real trade-offs, so you see exactly what deserves your time, budget, and energy.

Deploy rankings:

• After workshops or brainstorming sessions so you leave with a clear order of attack.

• In product or service roadmap reviews to prioritize new features.

• Anytime “everything is a priority” and you just need to cut through the noise.

Plus, rankings help you dodge the dreaded “all 4s and 5s” syndrome, because not everything in your world can be equally important, even if everyone tries to rate it that way.

Sample Ranking Prompts

Use ranking prompts when you want sharper, more honest priorities from people.

1. Rank these billing improvements in order of importance.

2. Prioritize the following support features.

3. Order these training topics by usefulness to your team.

4. Rank partnership benefits from most to least valuable.

5. Sort communication channels by effectiveness.

On top of that, once you see what climbs to the top of the list and what sinks to the bottom, you know exactly where to double down and where to hold back without second-guessing yourself.

Open-Ended Exploratory Questions

Open-ended exploratory questions are where you strike gold, because you uncover unexpected insights, killer quotes, and aha moments you could never predict.

Why and When to Use This Type

When you want to discover the unknowns, nothing beats asking people to explain things in their own words.

Open-ends show the story behind the scores, exposing challenges and wins that no rating scale could ever tease out.

Here’s the thing, open-ended questions are worth sprinkling in because:

• You hear directly, in their words, what works and what is not cutting it.

• They are lifesavers after something big, like a major disruption, pilot test, or process overhaul.

• They bring your dashboard data to life by adding color and voice.

On top of that, you do not want to overdo it, since a few smartly placed open-ends keep completion rates high and response quality strong.

Sample Open-Ended Questions

1. What is the single biggest improvement we could make to support your practice?

2. Describe a recent experience that exceeded your expectations.

3. What barriers, if any, hinder your day-to-day use of our platform?

4. How can we better align our goals with yours in the next quarter?

5. Is there anything else you’d like to share about working with us?

Plus, you will get stories, suggestions, and even the occasional thank-you, all perfect fodder for next-level tweaks and standout pull-quotes for your next board update.

Demographic & Profiling Questions

For powerful data analysis, demographic & profiling questions are your best friends. They help you slice and dice your results in ways that actually make sense, instead of staring at one giant data blob.

Why and When to Use This Type

Profiling questions unlock a new dimension: segmentation. This lets you spot trends among your largest clinics versus your solo practitioners, or see how new partners feel compared to your veterans.

Use these questions:

• At the end of your survey so no one bounces out too soon.

• To tailor follow-up communications (“Hey, we saw many specialists in your region want X!”).

• For benchmarking and deeper insight into where to focus your improvement energy.

On top of that, when you understand responder backgrounds, you can make sweeping improvements that fit each segment like a glove, instead of guessing and hoping for the best.

Sample Demographic Questions

1. How many practitioners are in your organization?

2. Which specialty best describes your practice?

3. How long have you partnered with [Organization]?

4. Which region is your primary location?

5. What is your preferred language for communication?

With this info, you can confidently say things like, “Looks like our newer, larger groups love the new system,” and you can quickly spot which profiles need tailored support next time, without playing data detective for hours.

Best Practices & Common Pitfalls: Dos and Don’ts for Provider Satisfaction Surveys

Ready to build your high-impact survey? You can use these best practices (and a few gotchas) to keep your survey crisp, clear, and action-oriented.

Keep your survey focused and friendly from the start.

• Do keep your survey under 10 minutes to avoid survey fatigue.

• Don’t overload with redundant questions and scales.

• Do personalize your survey invitations, because everyone likes the personal touch.

• Don’t send surveys during peak times, like end-of-quarter or right before holidays.

Test, refine, and mix methods so your feedback has real depth.

On top of that:

• Do always test your questions with a small group of providers first.

• Don’t assume every question is crystal clear, because what’s obvious to you may be muddy to others.

• Do blend quantitative scales with qualitative open-ends for rich, layered feedback.

• Don’t ignore anonymous feedback channels, since you will get more honesty that way.

Closing the loop turns feedback into real change.

Here’s the thing: Closing the feedback loop is everything.

• Do finish with actionable summaries and share back the results.

• Don’t let your new treasure trove of data collect digital dust, so put it to work.

With these tips, your provider satisfaction surveys can earn both raves and results, one completed survey at a time.

Plus, when you invest in great feedback tools, you make every provider feel like the MVP of your team, which is a pretty solid way to build loyalty.

You dig out the hidden stories, spotlight the heroes, and fix the bumps before they become craters, and your partners and their customers will thank you for it.