Can Healthcare Providers at a University Health Clinic Predict Patient Satisfaction?

Authors

B. Jo Hailey, University of Southern Mississippi
Kimberly Pargeon, University of Mississippi Medical Center
Virginia Crawford, University of Southern Mississippi

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-1-2000

Department

Psychology

Abstract

Patient satisfaction in university health settings has received little research attention, and it is unclear whether the issue is being addressed in college health clinics. Because providers may make their own evaluations of patient satisfaction in the absence of other information, the authors conducted a study to determine whether healthcare providers at a university health clinic could accurately assess patient satisfaction. Ten providers completed a 10-item questionnaire immediately following the medical encounter to rate their perceptions of selected patients' levels of satisfaction. After seeing a healthcare provider, 201 patients completed a comparable questionnaire indicating how satisfied they were with the experience. Responses of providers and patients were compared, using a paired-sample t test. The results showed that providers' ratings were significantly lower than patients' ratings, indicating that providers were unable to judge patient satisfaction accurately. The results suggest that formal evaluations of patient satisfaction should be included in college health services.

Publication Title

Journal of American College Health

Volume

49

Issue

3

First Page

111

Last Page

117

Recommended Citation

Hailey, B. J., Pargeon, K., Crawford, V. (2000). Can Healthcare Providers at a University Health Clinic Predict Patient Satisfaction?. Journal of American College Health, 49(3), 111-117.
Available at: https://aquila.usm.edu/fac_pubs/4063