[Patient satisfaction and hospital performance].

NECESSARY CONDITIONS: Qualitative analysis of hospital performance must take into account patient satisfaction in order to identify userís needs and expectations and to determine the acceptability of the health care practices and organization. However, as patient satisfaction is a ìsubjectiveî indicator, it is important to use standardized tools with proven validity and reliability. This is the necessary condition for valid comparisons between health care facilities or within a given facility over time which give results truly expressing patient perception of the quality of health care. METHODOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS: Numerous studies in the English literature have examined this point leading to a consensus on certain methodological considerations concerning the use of standardized instruments and the principal domains of study. IN FRANCE: It is important to develop tools meeting the needs and expectations of patients and which are adapted to the specific questions related to the French health care system. Such evaluation tools do exist for hospitalization quality in short-term adult units. Others should be developed to cover the entire field of hospital care (outpatient clinics, pediatrics, psychiatry, geriatrics ...).