Patients Satisfaction with the Medical Services of the Emergency Department during holidays: A Survey in three main Hospitals Affiliated to Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences
Amir Dibaei1*, Nasrin Saadati2 and Maryam Zare Zadeh3

1Department of Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. 2Department of Community Medicine, School of Medicine, Fertility and Infertility Research Center, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran. 3School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.

Abstract: One of the principles of Medical ethics is patient satisfaction and it is thus essential to observe the medical ethics in services and patients’ rights. Paying attention to patients’ views and comments will make us aware of the reasons for their dissatisfaction and can be used to reform the service system structure. One of the indices of evaluation of quality services in different hospitals is to determine the patients’ satisfaction with services in a particular department. Since the emergency department is the place to which the critically ill patients first refer, the quality of the services provided in this department and the patients’ rate of satisfaction with the services is indeed an indicator of the overall status of the hospital. The emergency medical centers are the most highly frequented places of hospitals. As the number of the personnel decreases during holidays and more patients refer to hospitals during these days, they will be more likely to be dissatisfied with the services. The present research aims to investigate the satisfaction rate of patients referring to the emergency departments of the hospitals affiliated to Jundi Shapur Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences. This research is a cross-sectional study to evaluate the patients’ satisfaction with the medical services of the emergency department of the hospitals affiliated to Jundi Shapur Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences (Razi, Golestan and Imam Khomeini hospital) during the holidays of a 6-month period in Autumn & Winter 2009. The research population was selected using random sampling method and the sample size was estimated about 149 people with the 95% confidence level. Of 149 patients, 88 (59.1%) were female and 59 (39.6%) were male. The participants’ mean age was 39 years old with the age range of 16 to 81 years. The overall satisfaction rate was 51.2% in 3 categories where 62.2% for specialized services, 44.2% for accessory services, and 43.1% for hospital facilities and costs. The order of the patients’ satisfaction was 54.9% for Golestan Hospital, 49.5% for Imam Hospital and 47.7% for Razi Hospital. The patients’ satisfaction rate with specialized services, accessory services, hospital facilities and costs for the Golestan, Imam, and Razi Hospitals was respectively 68.2%, 4.05%, 42.03%; 60.08%, 42.05%, 42.03%; and 57.7%, 43.15%, 39.4%. No significant relationship was found between the patients’ demographic characteristics and their satisfaction rate. The highest rate of satisfaction was for the specialized services, while the lowest rate was for the accessory services.

Keywords: Satisfaction; Emergency Medical ward; Jundi Shapur Ahvaz University of Medical Sciences

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