An Assessment of Patients Satisfaction with Eye Care Services Receiving from Eye Hospitals in Madhesh Province, Nepal

PurposeThis study was conducted to assess the level of patient satisfaction with the eye care services received from different tertiary eye hospitals, running under Nepal Nepal Netra Jyoti (NNJS) Sangh, of Madhesh Province, Nepal over a 3-month period (October-December) 2017. MethodsA Cross-sectional based study with client exit interviews were done, using pretested Likert scale tool in sample of 1190 (P=0.5, and 95% CI) consenting patients after receiving the ophthalmic care enrolled in the mentioned tertiary eye hospitals of Madhesh Province. Data on Behavior of the service provider, Services and facilities provided by the hospital was analyzed with the level of patients satisfaction. A Pearsons chi-square test was used to examine the relationship between overall satisfaction and the dependent variables. ResultsOnly 3.8 % of patients reported visiting the hospital more than four times. The main reasons for choosing their respective hospital was the quality of services delivered through modern equipment at affordable costs (53 %) followed by easy access to hospital (39%). The average waiting time was 58 min, with a range of 5-240 min. Level of education (P<0.05), Socioeconomic status (P<0.05), Waiting time (P<0.05), Hospital operating hours (P<0.05), Cleanliness (P<0.05) and Cost of Service (P<0.05) were significantly associated with the overall satisfaction with the services. Behavior of the service providers did not play a statistically significant role in overall satisfaction. ConclusionPatient satisfaction is a highly desirable outcome of clinical care and may even be an element of health status itself. Our data showed that a significant proportion (95%) of patients were satisfied, or highly satisfied overall (across all parametric measures), and that personal experience, beliefs and background may play a confounding factor in satisfaction. As a result, it can be safely concluded that perceived quality and performance in the hospitals are exceptional.