Pages: 62-70

Abstract

Background: The level of patients’ satisfaction has become a very important benchmark by which healthcare services are evaluated and improved. As against what obtains in developed world, periodic satisfaction surveys are yet to become a regular practice by health systems in many developing countries including Nigeria. Objectives: This study determined the level of satisfaction with quality of care among patients attending the outpatient department of a teaching hospital in south-west Nigeria. Methodology: A cross-sectional study involving 400 respondents recruited by simple random sampling. Data was obtained with a questionnaire incorporating a satisfaction scale with items on different domains of care. Factors associated with satisfaction were determined using cross-tabulations and calculation of unadjusted odds ratios (OR). A multivariate logistic regression model was then used to identify the independent predictors of satisfaction. Results: Overall, 301 (75.2%) were satisfied with the quality of the services they received. In the various sub-domains of care, doctor-patient interaction (4.37±0.50) and accessibility (4.35±0.49) had the highest mean satisfaction ratings while three domains with the lowest ratings were; pharmacy service (3.98±0.82), waiting time (3.96±0.66) and the environment (3.94±0.59). The factors associated with being satisfied were; older age (OR: 3.23, CI: 2.02–5.17) and being married (OR: 1.87, CI: 1.18–2.97) while having formal education was associated with lower odds of being satisfied (OR: 0.32, CI: 0.13 – 0.78). The only factor that independently predicted the level of satisfaction was patient’s age. (AOR: 2.31, CI: 1.35 – 3.97). Conclusion: The overall level of satisfaction was fairly good although suboptimal. The areas with the greatest need for improvement are pharmacy service, waiting time and hospital environment.