Satisfaction in population-based cancer screening in a Chinese rural high-risk population: the Yangzhong early diagnosis and treatment of upper gastrointestinal cancer

Abstract

Background Screening for upper gastrointestinal cancer (UGC) effectively reduces morbidity and mortality in gastric and esophageal cancers. It is considered one of the effective measures for cancer control in China, but studies on its functional quality are lacking. Our study assessed the quality of screening service funded by Upper Gastrointestinal Cancer Early diagnosis and treatment (UGCEDAT) and its correlation in Yangzhong People’s hospital, China. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 516 screening users at a screening centre in Yanghzong People’s hospital from April to July 2021. The service quality questionnaire (SERVQUAL) based on the service quality gap (SQG) model was adopted. We calculated the mean scores of perceptions and expectations and their gap. To determine the association between overall SQG and related features of participants, we used a multivariate logistic regression. Results The average scores of screening service users’ perceptions and expectations were 4.05 and 4.55, respectively. The SQG of five dimensions (tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy) were negative, and the overall SQG was -0.51. The responsiveness dimension had the largest gap, and tangibles had the smallest gap. Occupation status (AOR: 0.57; CI: 0.37–0.89), health self-assessment (AOR: 4.97; CI: 1.35–18.23), endoscopy experience (AOR: 0.55; CI: 0.38–0.81), distance from screening hospital (AOR: 1.85; CI: 1.25–2.73) and frequency of visit (AOR: 1.65; CI: 1.10–2.46) were associated with the overall SQG. Conclusions We observed a negative gap between perceptions and expectations of the function quality of screening service, implying a high dissatisfaction across different dimensions. Service providers should take adequate measures to bridge the dimension with the largest quality gap. Meanwhile, attention should be paid to identifying the influencing factors of the overall SQG and the characteristics of dimensional expectations and perceptions to improve the effectiveness of the screening program.

Satisfaction and its determinants of rural upper gastrointestinal cancer screening in China: a preliminary cross-sectional study

“…In our study, rural participants were more likely to be satisfied with the technical quality, communication, time spent with doctor, and convenience and accessibility dimensions, which may be due to lower expectations. 20 Contrastingly, we also found that participants with an education level of junior high school were less likely to be satisfied than those with an education level of primary school and below with the general satisfaction dimension, which can be understood as higher expectations. 41 45 Further, we found that farmers were less likely to be satisfied with the interpersonal manner, which reminds us to pay attention to the service attitude when communicating with farmers and improving the non-technical ability training among screening staff.…”

“…Furthermore, it may also be due to the preponderance of the participants from rural areas, who usually have lower expectations than the urban ones. 20 The percentages of satisfaction with the interpersonal manner and communication dimensions were 88.36% and 83.56%, respectively, which ranked second and third, respectively. Ifediora and Rogers reported that among patients who received home-visit services, 75.7% and 87.3% were satisfied with the same dimensions of satisfaction.…”

“…Furthermore, it may also be due to the preponderance of the participants from rural areas, who usually have lower expectations than the urban ones. 20 …”

“…The difference may be due to the heterogeneity of the services, target population and the service providers included in the studies. Furthermore, it may also be due to the preponderance of the participants from rural areas, who usually have lower expectations than the urban ones 20…”

“…Therefore, our project team successively applied the Service Quality Questionnaire and Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ-18) to evaluate the functional quality of rural UGC screening services. 20 This study aimed to assess participants’ satisfaction with the screening services from their perspective using the PSQ-18 scale and to explore the potential factors that are associated with different quality dimensions.…”