Patient satisfaction with healthcare services: A critical review

As healthcare systems shift from fee-for-service to alternate payment models, and consumers gain access to more healthcare options, patient satisfaction is becoming increasingly important for the financial performance of healthcare providers and for patient well-being. However, patient satisfaction is a complex construct. To assist researchers and practitioners, the authors provide a critical review of articles published in the Quality Management Journal (QMJ) on the topic of patient satisfaction. The authors employ Golder, Mitra, and Moorman's (2012) seminal integrative framework of quality as a lens through which to evaluate the studies' contributions and shortcomings. They find that prior QMJ research has focused on patient satisfaction from the perspective of the healthcare delivery system. However, less attention has been given to: 1) understanding patients' perceptions of their experiences and how these perceptions affect satisfaction and perceived quality, and 2) identifying patients' expectations of what attributes should be provided during healthcare services. Consequently, widely used measures of satisfaction, including the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems surveys, may be inadequate. The authors' review provides direction for researchers in developing a more comprehensive research agenda for understanding patient satisfaction.