Assessment of patient satisfaction following pharmacist counselling session by a novel patient satisfaction feedback on counselling questionnaire

Abstract

Objective The study aimed to develop a novel tool known as patient satisfaction feedback on counselling (PSF) questionnaire and documented patient satisfaction following pharmacist counselling using the tool. Methods A 2‐month cross‐sectional study was conducted at Clifton Hospital Pharmacy in Karachi, Pakistan, using a novel questionnaire in both English and Urdu languages after face and content validation. Convenient sampling was employed, and data were analysed by SPSS v22. The study was approved by Ethics Committee of Clifton Hospital (Letter#23‐18). Key findings Content validity index and reliability were reported at 0.83 and 0.88. All items loaded on a single factor. A total of 350 patients participated in the study. The response rate was 67.1%. Most patients were adults (70%), married (66%), graduates (64%), employed (42%) and resided in urban localities (92%). Most patients suffered from chronic illness (68%) and had no comorbidity (78%). Half of patients had previous exposure of pharmacist counselling (52%). Average counselling time was around 8–9 min (X = 8.7, SD = 4.3). More than half of patients (56%) were willing to pay an average cost of PKR 346 (US $ 3) for a pharmacist counselling session, and 60% of patients were satisfied with counselling. A significant correlation was reported between patient satisfaction rating and amount willing to pay (q = 0.284, P < 0.001), and duration of counselling (q = 0.592, P < 0.001). Conclusion Patients appeared satisfied with counselling. Age, education, comorbidity, illness type and duration, health insurance, number of medicines prescribed, urban residence and previous counselling exposure were determinants of patient satisfaction. Most notable finding was patients' willingness to pay for counselling should this service be charged that increased with patient satisfaction.

Patient Satisfaction and Their Willingness to Pay for a Pharmacist Counseling Session in Hospital and Community Pharmacies in Saudi Healthcare Settings

“…This study was conducted in the third largest metropolitan region of Saudi Arabia comprising of three major cities with a population of over 0.3 million (General Authority for Statistics, 2016;AlQarni et al, 2019). The study utilized a previously validated instrument known as patient satisfaction feedback (PSF) that was translated in Arabic language, and gathered responses from a large patient sample in both hospital and community pharmacy settings (Naqvi et al, 2019). These are some notable strengths of this work.…”

“…A respondent is free to mention any amount he/ she is willing to pay considering if the counseling is a charged service. Item 10 is in the form of a rating scale (Naqvi et al, 2019).…”

“…From a patient's perspective satisfaction could translate into empowerment in clinical decision making, promote a positive attitude toward health and medicines taking behavior, as well as better disease state management (Wendy and Scott, 1994;Foot, 2004). Besides, satisfied patients are more likely to have better recovery that motivates healthcare provider to deliver better care (Wendy and Scott, 1994;Naqvi et al, 2019). From an organization's perspective, it is an important for sustaining business as economic analyses related to patient satisfaction estimate a figure of USD 0.2 million as a lifetime income loss to the healthcare facility due to patient discontent (Voluntary Hospitals of America, 1988;Naqvi et al, 2019).…”

“…Besides, satisfied patients are more likely to have better recovery that motivates healthcare provider to deliver better care (Wendy and Scott, 1994;Naqvi et al, 2019). From an organization's perspective, it is an important for sustaining business as economic analyses related to patient satisfaction estimate a figure of USD 0.2 million as a lifetime income loss to the healthcare facility due to patient discontent (Voluntary Hospitals of America, 1988;Naqvi et al, 2019). In healthcare system of France and Germany, measuring satisfaction of patients from healthcare delivery is required for quality assurance (Boyer et al, 2006;Schoenfelder et al, 2011).…”

“…Studies that evaluate WTP for pharmacy counseling service in developing countries are scant. A study by Naqvi and colleagues reported that 56% of Pakistani patients appeared willing to pay an average USD 3 as fee for a one-time counseling session with pharmacist (Naqvi et al, 2019). Another study by Shafie and Hassali reported that 67% of Malaysian patients indicated their willingness to pay an average USD 2.86 for a dispensing service by pharmacist (Shafie and Hassali, 2010).…”