Patient satisfaction with the quality of healthcare services at selected major outpatient clinics at at Sultan Ahmad Shah Medical Centre Kuantan Pahang

• Main Authors: Che' Man, Mohamad, Che Alhadi, Shahidah, Yusof, Muhammad Zubir, Mohd Arifin, Siti Roshaidai, Mohd Razib, Mohd Zhafri, Amiruddin, Salman
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Faculty of Medicine, UKM 2023
• Subjects: R Medicine (General); RA Public aspects of medicine; RT Nursing
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/110114/1/110114_Patient%20satisfaction%20with%20the%20quality.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/110114/; https://www.medicineandhealthukm.com/article/international-virtual-medical-research-symposium
• Institution: Universiti Islam Antarabangsa Malaysia

Introduction: Patient satisfaction is a key factor in determining any gaps or inadequacies in the healthcare provider’s services. This study aimed to measure the level of patient satisfaction and its associated factors towards the healthcare service of outpatient clinics in Sultan Ahmad Shah Medical Centre (SASMEC), IIUM, Kuantan, Pahang. Materials and Methods: A total of 1050 patients were recruited from internal medicine, paediatrics, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, orthopaedics, and psychiatry clinics between February 2021 and February 2022. A questionnaire consists of two parts: one that covers patients’ sociodemographic data and the other that assesses the patients’ level of satisfaction with the healthcare services using the Malay-validated Short-Form Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ-18). Results: The mean overall satisfaction level was 3.94 + 0.46, with the highest mean scores in the interpersonal manners (4.26 + 0.64) and communications (4.26 + 0.56) domains. From the multivariate analysis, it was found that those patients in the lower income group (B40) were more satisfied with the quality of the healthcare services (B = 0.172, 95% CI = 0.08, 0.263) compared to the middle-income group. Being a student (B = - 0.202, 95% CI = - 0.296, -0.108) and having a follow-up treatment visit (B = -0.082, 95% CI = - 0.156, - 0.008), were significantly associated with lower satisfaction levels as compared to their counterparts. Conclusion: Overall, the patients who attended SASMEC were satisfied with the service provided especially interpersonal and communication. Continuous service improvement is influenced by household income, occupation, and purpose of visit.