Patient satisfaction with quality of care in a hospital system in Qatar.

This article presents the results of a patient satisfaction survey carried out in an acute care hospital complex in Doha, Qatar, in the Middle East. The objectives were to determine the level of patient satisfaction as follows: in general, in 18 different patient areas and services, for Qatar citizens and noncitizens, among patients with different sociodemographic characteristics, and in technical and interpersonal areas of care. The quantitative, descriptive survey design involved two 73-item questionnaires, one in English and one in Arabic. It was given to medical, surgical, and obstetric and gynecologic patients. Satisfaction was rated on a 5-point scale, and univariate statistics and chi-square analysis were used to determine frequencies and statistical differences. The response rate was 77%; 84% rated the overall quality of care excellent or very good. Respondents gave nursing services the highest ratings and slightly favored technical over interpersonal care. The results show that patients are willing to participate in the survey process and that the questionnaire is a valuable tool for measuring satisfaction and for obtaining feedback and continuous evaluation of services.