Continuous Care and Hospitalized Patients Satisfaction

Introduction: Patient satisfaction is one of the core elements of patientcentered care in addition to clinical outcomes. In this manuscript, we looked at the difference between patient’s satisfaction with hospital care when it was provided by hospitalist physicians when compared to non-hospitalists. The null hypothesis was that there are no differences in satisfaction scores provided by patients based on the group of physicians providing the service.

Methods: Data was collected from 4 hospitals in Ohio, USA. Patients were presented with standardized HCAPS questionnaire upon discharge from the hospital. Questions related to satisfaction with physician care were selected and analyzed.

Results: Total of 6,101 patients answered surveys during the study period. They were either cared for by attending hospitalists or non-hospitalists.

Discussion: Based on results seen in this study, issues that had to do with patient’s communication with their physician were found to be significant. Patient-physician connection has been shown to have the most significant effect on patient satisfaction.