How to assess patient satisfaction regarding physician interaction: A systematic review

Abstract

Patient satisfaction is an important health care quality indicator. This is particularly relevant in chronic diseases, such as, many dermatological diseases. The purpose of the current systematic review was to assess the validated tools measuring patient satisfaction with physician interaction. We performed a systematic review search in Pubmed, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE. The psychometric properties of the instruments and the domains explored were assessed. Overall, 2229 articles were extracted from the literature search. Of these, 146 articles were eligible for inclusion, 55 were included, and 22 scores were selected. A total of 13 instruments reported cross-cultural validation and the EUROPEP score highlighted the most diverse cross-cultural validation involving 11 different countries. All scores were assessed for content validity, construct validity, factor analysis, reliability, and responsiveness to change. The extent of the validation varied between scores with a few assessing practicability. The following domains were explored: listening skills, empathy, caring/compassion, confidentiality, honesty, behavior, competency/technical skills, satisfaction with the information provided, time given, availability, the environment, trust in the physician, ability to comply with the recommendations, and readiness to recommend the physician to other patients. We identified a total of 22 validated instruments. The major gaps in the validation process appear to be the practicability of the scores and the cross-cultural validation. Major domains evaluated by the scores are communication skills that can be improved by specific training. There is a need to improve evaluation of the quality of the patient-physician relationship in dermatology using validated instruments. K E Y W O R D S chronic diseases, patient-physician relations, patient satisfaction, questionnaire, validated tools 1 | INTRODUCTION Patient satisfaction is an important and widely used health care quality indicator. In some health care systems, patient satisfaction influences physician remuneration. 1 Patient satisfaction is particularly important in chronic diseases as the patient-physician relationship can influence compliance and treatment outcome. These elements are relevant to dermatological diseases as patient-physician disconnect has been identified in chronic inflammatory diseases. 2 Low satisfaction with physician interactions has been observed in several dermatological diseases, such as, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and hidradenitis suppurativa. 3-6 Clothilde Godillot and Fatma Jendoubi contributed equally to this study.

Freedom from disease in psoriasis: a Delphi consensus definition by patients, nurses and physicians

“…Having control of their disease is also central to the QoL and well-being of people with psoriasis, and this can be achieved by ensuring that they have access to comprehensive information on the available treatments and by building a relationship of mutual trust and respect between the individual with psoriasis and their HCP. 21 Finally, the overarching consensus statement helps us to understand that the concept of 'freedom of disease' is multifaceted, with all five themes needing to be addressed to allow the individual with psoriasis to feel that they have fully reached this state. Although not specifically addressed in this consensus statement, 'freedom from disease' in psoriasis also implies freedom from any potential comorbidities.…”

Barriers and Facilitators of Implementing Injury Prevention Practices by Massage Therapists

“…As with most jobs, but particularly with contingent work that involves working with multiple clients during a shift (ie, gigs), time availability is a recurring issue raised by employees 49–51 . Time was a critical factor related to implementing self-care practices across all MTs, both as a facilitator and barrier.…”

“…11,21,40,41,47,48 As with most jobs, but particularly with contingent work that involves working with multiple clients during a shift (ie, gigs), time availability is a recurring issue raised by employees. [49][50][51] Time was a critical factor related to implementing self-care practices across all MTs, both as a facilitator and barrier. Based on the regression models, when time was a facilitator, it was associated with implementing an average of 2.1 more self-care practices; in contrast, when time was identified as a barrier it was associated with implementing 0.9 fewer self-care items despite wanting to make these changes.…”

“…Based on the regression models, when time was a facilitator, it was associated with implementing an average of 2.1 more self-care practices; in contrast, when time was identified as a barrier it was associated with implementing 0.9 fewer self-care items despite wanting to make these changes. Research demonstrates that in professions that reduce client volume and workload pressures, musculoskeletal complaints decline, 52–56 while job and client satisfaction increases 50,51,57–59 …”

Satisfaction with Health Care Services in the Adult Population of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Several tools have been designed to assess patient satisfaction with health care: A recent systematic review evaluated 13 such tools [ 14 ] and concluded that the EUROPEP tool [ 15 ] has been the most internationally validated of them and thus is suitable for use in international settings. In addition, the tool has been successfully used to compare patient satisfaction with health care during the pre- and post-economic crisis periods in Greece, which documents its sensitivity in showing the dynamics of satisfaction in that time and creates grounds for its application to compare patient satisfaction with care in the pre-COVID-19 period and during the COVID-19 pandemic [ 16 ].…”