The Effect of Environmental Factors on the Level of Satisfaction, emotions, and Behavioral Intentions of Hospitalized Patients

In the competitive market of medical services, providing quality services and building a strong relationship that shapes patient loyalty is a key factor in gaining market share. Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the effect of environmental factors on the level of satisfaction, emotions, and behavioral intentions in hospitalized patients.

The present study was a descriptive-analytical cross-sectional one conducted in the first half of 2019. A total of 210 patients admitted to selected public hospitals in Shiraz were included in the study by simple random sampling. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. Data were entered into SPSS software (version 22) and Smart pls (version 3). Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations were used to test the hypotheses.

Environmental factors had an effect on behavioral intentions, emotions, and satisfaction of hospitalized patients with path coefficients of 0.377, 0.654, and 0.590, respectively. Satisfaction with a path coefficient of 0.548 and emotions with a path coefficient of 0.001 had an effect on behavioral intentions. Moreover, it was proved that emotions and satisfaction had a mediating role in the impact of environmental factors on the behavioral intentions of hospitalized patients.

The hospital should pay attention to providing and strengthening environmental indicators and improving the physical space and it should prioritize these factors in its future plans. Also, allocate a separate part of the annual hospital costs to this matter.