Satisfaction with medical care among elderly patients: a review of research findings with implications for management practice and future inquiry.

Research on patient satisfaction has focused predominantly on the mainstream adult population (ages 18-64). Satisfaction in older patients has not been adequately studied. Moreover, a systematic review of the research literature that does exist on this topic has not yet been conducted. The literature search yielded only 17 studies that met the selection criteria established for this review. Key research elements and findings from each of the studies are arrayed in matrix form. The results of the literature review are organized and analyzed in terms of four major categories of variables: background characteristics, predispositional variables, service quality attributes, and contextual factors. Special attention is awarded to identifying the determinants of satisfaction among elderly patients and the ways in which their service quality appraisals may differ in comparison with the general adult population of medical care consumers. Implications for management practice and directions for future research are discussed.