Comparison of resident and faculty patient satisfaction surveys in a pediatric ambulatory clinic.

BACKGROUND: Patient satisfaction is an important component of quality of care. To date, no studies have looked at differences in faculty and resident patient satisfaction in a pediatric practice.
PURPOSE: The purpose was to compare physician measures of patient satisfaction among residents in training and faculty attendings.
METHODS: We conducted satisfaction surveys containing 4 questions related to physician performance at a children's health clinic. We compared satisfaction scores across training levels of physicians.
RESULTS: We analyzed 676 surveys. The 2nd-year and 3rd/4th-year residents had similar high scores on all questions compared to faculty preceptors. The 1st-year residents scored significantly lower than faculty preceptors, 3rd/4th-year residents, and 2nd-year residents on 1 question and the combined average of the 3 physician-specific questions.
CONCLUSIONS: The 1st-year residents scored lower on patient satisfaction than physicians at higher levels of training. The 2nd-year and 3rd/4th-year residents achieved high satisfaction scores in a primary care clinic, comparable to scores of experienced practitioners.