Measurement of patient satisfaction: the smith-falvo patient-doctor interaction scale.

Patient satisfaction has been considered important for many years. This article provides a review of various methods that have been developed to measure patient satisfaction and describes the use of the Smith-Falvo scale in determining patient satisfaction with the medical services provided by residents in the Verdun Family Practice Program. In view of the limited range of scores provided by the use of this scale, the authors recommend that further research be done to develop a method of assessment of patient satisfaction that will take into account the duration of patient-physician interviews.