Patient Satisfaction after Pulmonary Resection for Lung Cancer: A Multicenter Comparative Analysis

Abstract

Background: Patient satisfaction reflects the perception of the customer about the level of quality of care received during the episode of hospitalization. Objective: To compare the levels of satisfaction of patients submitted to lung resection in two different thoracic surgical units. Methods: Prospective analysis of 280 consecutive patients submitted to pulmonary resection for neoplastic disease in two centers (center A: 139 patients; center B: 141 patients; 2009–2010). Patients’ satisfaction was assessed at discharge through the EORTC-InPatSat32 module, a 32-item, multi-scale self-administered anonymous questionnaire. Each scale (ranging from 0 to 100 in score) was compared between the two units. Multivariable regression and bootstrap were used to verify factors associated with the patients’ general satisfaction (dependent variable). Results: Patients from unit B reported a higher general satisfaction (91.5 vs. 88.3, p = 0.04), mainly due to a significantly higher satisfaction in the doctor-related scales (doctors’ technical skill: p = 0.001; doctors’ interpersonal skill: p = 0.008; doctors’ availability: p = 0.005, and doctors information provision: p = 0.0006). Multivariable regression analysis and bootstrap confirmed that level of care in unit B (p = 0.006, bootstrap frequency 60%) along with lower level of education of the patient population (p = 0.02, bootstrap frequency 62%) were independent factors associated with a higher general patient satisfaction. Conclusion: We were able to show a different level of patient satisfaction in patients operated on in two different thoracic surgery units. A reduced level of patient satisfaction may trigger changes in the management policy of individual units in order to meet patients’ expectations and improve organizational efficiency.

Patients want more information after surgery: a prospective audit of satisfaction with perioperative information in lung cancer surgery

“…Confounding factors may be present among our patientd including personality types and educational level. Distressed personality types report lower satisfaction and that they have been given less information and those with higher educational levels report lower satisfaction [ 18 , 19 ]. Intrapersonal comparison should reduce the impact of these in comparing responses across time; in addition the fact that free text responses and binary regression analysis identified similar topics of importance supports the findings being real and not due to a statistical phenomenon.…”

Satisfaction with care of hospitalised patients with advanced cancer in the Netherlands

“…Patient satisfaction with hospital care reflects the perception of the patient of the quality of care they receive during their hospitalisation (Kullberg et al, 2015;Wentlandt et al, 2016). Most research on patient satisfaction with end-of-life care in the hospital has been conducted in specific settings, such as a palliative care unit or an oncology department (Arora et al, 2010;Bredart et al, 2009;Buzgova, Hajnova, Sikorova, & Jarosova, 2014;Dy et al, 2008;Nguyen et al, 2014;Seccareccia et al, 2015;Wentlandt et al, 2016) or in patients with a specific type of cancer, such as gynaecologic cancer or lung cancer (Plotti et al, 2015;Pompili et al, 2013;Skret-Magierlo, Ras, Barnas, & Skret, 2016). Little is known about satisfaction with inhospital care of patients with advanced cancer.…”

The Association between Patient-Centered Attributes of Care and Patient Satisfaction

“…Among the three attributes examined in our study, thoroughness reflects patients' perception of technical quality, while listening and explanation reflect the quality of interpersonal communication. Few studies have evaluated the impact of perceived technical quality on satisfaction [16,22,23], and none used nationally representative data. A study using data collected in Indianapolis in the late 1990s concluded that physician ability to provide explanations to patients and the length of time spent with the doctor exerted a stronger influence on satisfaction than did thoroughness of care [6].…”

“…Very few studies have extended PCC evaluations to the technical quality of care (such as thoroughness), which may capture aspects of services received more objectively than quality of communication [6]. The literature consistently distinguishes the interpersonal aspects of quality from the technical aspects, suggesting they are best considered as distinct service components [16][17][18]. As a consequence, their effect on patients' perceptions of quality and satisfaction may differ.…”