Patient Satisfaction with Healthcare Service Quality in Manhattan, New York - Coursework Example

Patient Satisfaction with Healthcare Service Quality in Manhattan, New York Patient Satisfaction with Healthcare Service Qualityin Manhattan, New York Abstract This study seeks to document the state of art of the patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality in Manhattan, New York. The enquiry will explain the connection between patient satisfaction and perception of healthcare service quality. Significance of different socio-demographic variables influencing the patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality will be assessed. Given the nature of patient satisfaction and patient perception of healthcare service quality, this study will employ the SERVQUAL tool to examine how the healthcare service quality affects patient satisfaction. The enquiry will seek an understanding of how patient satisfaction strengths or weakens the trust patients have in the healthcare system of a place and its service providers. The enquiry will assess whether patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality differs with the type of institution in terms of whether the institution is privately-owned or public. This study will seek to document how patient satisfaction differs with the type of service, whether in patient or outpatient. The outcome of this research study will add onto the existing knowledge on the important issue of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality. This is a particularly timely issue to delve into in light of the recent developments in the healthcare sector in the United States that has elicited intriguing sentiments from different quarters. Introduction Healthcare quality is crucial in ensuring high patient satisfaction. Accessibility, affordability, and diversity are some of the determinants of patient satisfaction. Andaleeb (2001) asserts that the knowledge of patient satisfaction is important to healthcare policy makers, healthcare providers and healthcare organizations. Healthcare policy makers use the knowledge of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality to decide on healthcare aspects that need improvement and more funds. Policy makers use this knowledge to come up with policies that safeguard the welfare of both healthcare providers and beneficiaries. Badri et. al. (2008) note that this knowledge helps healthcare providers in determining which areas of their service provision they need to vary and which aspects to enhance. Information on patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality helps physicians adopt better measures of intervening in patient issues in a more holistic way. Healthcare organizations need information on patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality in order to decide on how best to attract and retain clients. Healthcare organizations that remain up to date with such information are in a position to decide where to channel more organization resources to either in human resource or equipment. Such organizations are better placed to encourage patient referrals, recommendation and raise short- and long-term organizational profitability. There have been studies that have sought to understand the relationship between healthcare service quality and patient satisfaction (Bowers et. al., 2004). Studies show that there have been growing interests in the recent times to continually improve access to quality healthcare service from quarters such as the government and other non-governmental organizations. The growing interests of the government in improving access to healthcare service quality are seen in the increase in the budgetary allocation to healthcare and other initiatives such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Obamacare. An important question that has been asked and that resonates in this study is how much improving access to quality healthcare service affects patient satisfaction. In the endeavour to answer this question, the issue of patient perception of healthcare service quality is inevitable. According to Crow et. al. (2002) patient perception of healthcare service quality is positively related to their satisfaction with healthcare. As such, patient perception of healthcare service quality influences patients’ decision to seek healthcare service from different providers. It is therefore an important determinant of a healthcare organization’s corporate image. There are a number of researchers who argue that patient satisfaction is better understood when investigated cross-culturally. This is because patient expectations, preferences, and priorities differ across healthcare systems, cultural backgrounds, and countries. Patients respond to and interpret different aspects of healthcare differently. This explains why measurement of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality differs among countries and cultures. The study’s primary concern is to study patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality in Manhattan, New York, through investigating aspects of healthcare that are important to Manhattan patients while evaluating the quality of healthcare service they receive. Below are the specific questions that this study will seek to answer. What are the determinants of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality in Manhattan? What are the factors that shape patient perception of the quality of healthcare service? How does patient perception of healthcare service quality differ between those who seek healthcare service from public hospitals and those that seek it from private hospitals? How does patient perception of healthcare service quality affect patient satisfaction? (Jackson et. al., 2001) This study will set out on the hypotheses that there is a significant relationship between patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality and socio-demographic factors. The study also hypothesizes that here is a significant difference between patient perceptions of healthcare service quality between patients who seek healthcare service from public hospitals and those that seek it from private hospitals. It also postulates that there is a positive relationship between patient perception of healthcare service quality and patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality (Andaleeb, 2001). Method Design This study will use the grounded theory philosophical approach in the study of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality. According to Badri et. al. (2008) this is because satisfaction is a highly subjective issue and needs to be studied form individuals’ points of reference. Grounded theory is effective in the study of idiosyncratic issues that are largely qualitative and as such should suffice the study of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality. The study will utilize the SERVQUAL scale because it captures the level of patient expectations with healthcare service quality while taking into account the level of service received. This tool will be particularly important in this study because it is able to detect the gaps that exist between patient expectations and patient perception of quality service. The gaps of interest to this study include those that vary with healthcare system design, service delivery and market. It is worth noting that the SERVQUAL scale detects five possible sources of gaps in the healthcare setting. One source of gap that is important in measuring patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality is the disparity between patient expectations of healthcare service and healthcare management’s knowledge of patient satisfaction. Another gap emanates from a mismatch between a healthcare organization’s specification of healthcare service and patients’ perceptions and expectations. This is caused by an organization’s limited resources that hinder quality service provision and delivery and it is also caused by an organization’s lack of sound policies about quality service (Bowers et. al., 2004). There is a gap that derives from a disparity between a healthcare organization’s quality service specification and its workers’ understanding and internalization of this specification. Another gap results from a disparity between an organization’s promise of quality service provision and the actual service provided to its customers. The last gap is a culmination of the other four gaps and touches on individual patient perception of quality service (Crow et. al., 2002). This study will look out for convergent validity that records a positive correlation with measures of a concept. Convergent validity will be enhanced by ensuring that healthcare concepts are clearly defined to establish the point at which they meet. Nomological validity will derive from significant and positive correlation between different scales. Cronbach alpha coefficients of 0.92 for tangibles and 0.82 for empathy will help enhance the reliability of the findings of this study. Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.9 is usually used to measure the overall quality of healthcare (Andaleeb, 2001). Participants The participants in this study will be drawn from the population of patients who seek healthcare service from ten public and ten private Manhattan hospitals. A sample of 400 patients should suffice for use with the preferred confidence level of ninety five percent with an allowance of error of ± 0.5. Eligible respondents will be between 25 and 40 years of age and will be drawn from different ethnicities, income levels, gender, occupations, marital status, type of healthcare service and type of hospital (private or public). Random sampling will be employed in selecting patients for participation in this study. Any person seeking healthcare service in Manhattan hospitals will be eligible for inclusion in this study (Badri et. al., 2008). This study is going to take the design of a case study. As such, it will use both structured and unstructured interviews and questionnaires in collecting data. A case study would be ideal in documenting patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality because it will help capture its highly elusive elements. The mean ages of participants and their incomes and variances of the patient perception will be calculated to help draw patterns and conclusions. A limitation with using the SERVQUAL tool is that it compresses the study of patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality to five dimensions. It requires respondents to tick one point when indicating their experience of service quality even when they would have rated it differently. Another limitation with this study would be the various ways in which SERVQUAL defines patient expectations that can confuse the consumers of its outcomes (Bowers et. al., 2004). Materials SERVQUAL tool works well in measuring customer satisfaction in different countries especially in the western countries. It will work well for Manhattan case because it might not need modification as it does in other cultural settings. It measures customer satisfaction along the dimensions of tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy. ANOVA will help in evaluating the significance of different socio-demographic factors. SPSS software program will be used in data analysis (Crow et. al., 2002). Procedure This study will start by seeking the approval of the different ethics committees before commencement. The tools that will be used in collecting data will be checked for possible harm and offence on participants in order to assure participants of security. On encounter with the selected participants, participants will be issued with a consent form seeking their permission to take part in the study. Participants will be informed of the right to pull out of the study at any stage of the study. In order to ensure confidentiality of the information provided by participants, participants will not be required to indicate their names but only other demographic details. After data is collected, it will be synthesized, interpreted, analyzed and compiled in a report (Jackson et. al., 2001). Results It is expected that factor analysis, simple and multiple regressions should help establish the level of significance between healthcare service quality and patient satisfaction. Different models of simple and multiple regressions will be used in order to test the hypotheses stated in this study. According Andaleeb (2001), one-way ANOVA should help establish the impact of different demographic factors on patient perception of and patient satisfaction with healthcare service quality. It should also help assess whether there is a significant difference between patient perception and satisfaction with healthcare quality between patients from private hospitals and those from public hospitals. Central tendencies and variance will help show the patterns of patient satisfaction among different patients. Discussion The outcomes of this study should demonstrate to hospitals how they can establish the attributes of healthcare that are important to patient in order to help them improve their healthcare service provision to patients. This will help inform healthcare management’s decisions on the areas that need more resources than others. Policy makers would understand how they can use a tool like SERVQUAL to obtain important information on what to improve about the healthcare system. The findings of this study should have important theoretical implications showing the critical role of both outcome and process elements of healthcare service in patient satisfaction. This study will not be comprehensive due to constraints of time and instruments. Future research studies on this topic should incorporate more components including satisfaction with life and confidence in the medical care system in general that will not be considered in this study (Badri et. al., 2008). References Andaleeb, S. S. (2001). Service quality perceptions and patient satisfaction: a study of hospitals in a developing country. Social Science & Medicine, 52 (49);1359–1370. Badri, M., Attia, S., and Ustadi, A. (2008). Testing the not so obvious models in healthcare quality. International Journal for Quality in Healthcare, 21(20); 159-74. Bowers, M.R., Swan, J.E., and Koehler, W.F. (2004). What attributes determine quality and satisfaction with healthcare delivery? Health Care Management Review, 19(4); 49-55. Crow R, Gage H, Hampson S, Hart J, Kimber A, Storey L, & Thomas H. (2002). The measurement of satisfaction with healthcare: implications for practice from a systematic review of the literature. Health Technol Assess, 6 (3); 241-244. Jackson, J., Chamberlin, J., & Kroenke, K. (2001). Predictors of patient satisfaction. Social Science and Medicine, 52 (49); 609-620. Read More