Patient satisfaction with ambulatory healthcare services: waiting time and filling time.

Customer satisfaction is an important measure of service quality in healthcare organizations. This study investigated the relationship between patient waiting and satisfaction with ambulatory healthcare services, with waiting times divided into segments of the patient-care episode. Two management techniques to alter perceptions of waiting were also examined. Regression models measuring the effect of waiting times on satisfaction found that the total time spent waiting for the clinician was the most significant predictor of patient satisfaction. Informing patients how long their wait would be and being occupied during the wait were also significant predictors of patient satisfaction. These results show that waiting times, even if they cannot be shortened, can be managed more effectively to improve patient satisfaction.