Patient satisfaction: a descriptive study of a breast care clinic in Iran

A descriptive study was carried out to examine patient satisfaction among women attending the Iranian Centre for Breast Cancer. A specially designed patient satisfaction questionnaire was distributed to all attendees and they were asked to complete the questionnaire. The questionnaire contained items on satisfaction with care organization, physical environment, personnel communication skills, clinical care, and overall satisfaction. In all, 425 women participated in the study. The mean age of women was 40.4 years (SD= 11.6), most were married (81%) and housewives (69%). A vast majority of women were very satisfied or satisfied with physical environment, personnel communication skills, and clinical care received. Eighty- two per cent of respondents were very satisfied or satisfied with the clinic’s overall performance. There was a significant agreement between patients’ overall satisfaction and satisfaction with physical environment, personnel communication skills, and clinical care. There was greatest agreement between patients’ overall satisfaction and satisfaction with examination room (Kappa= 0.21, P<0.0001) and with physicians’ consultation (Kappa= 0.20, P<0.0001). None of the demographic variables showed any significant association with patients’ overall satisfaction. The findings suggest that the physical environment and physicians’ style of consultation contribute most to the patients’ overall satisfaction.