Thesis (M.Tech.: Chiropractic)- Dept. of Chiropractic, Durban University of Technology, 2007 xv, 145, 22 leaves / It has been shown that patient satisfaction evaluation is an excellent tool that may be used to determine whether practitioner services are meeting the needs of the general public. Furthermore, it has been observed that patients who were satisfied with their treatment behave differently to those who were dissatisfied with their levels of care, as patient’s who were satisfied with their levels of treatment are more likely to be compliant with their treatment regime and more likely to seek out similar care for the same condition in the future. With satisfaction having such an affect on patient’s behaviour toward practitioners and the treatment experience outcomes, it is imperative to understand the underlying factors that may affect the levels of satisfaction.

Mini-dissertation in partial compliance with the requirements for the Masters Degree in Technology: Homoeopathy, in the Department of Homoeopathy at the Durban University of Technology, 2008. / Within healthcare, patient satisfaction is a combination of need, expectation and the experience of care being provided. Patient satisfaction is an intermediate outcome, and is an important measure of the quality of the overall care provided. Healthcare which does not satisfy the patient is usually less effective, because less satisfied patients tend not to comply with instructions, they take longer to follow up with appointments and they have a poor understanding of their medical condition (Wilkin, Hallam and Dogget, 1994; AI-Assaf, 1998). The provision of overall quality healthcare for patients is a key motivation for many service providers. Therefore, determining the level of patient satisfaction forms a very important part of managing and fulfilling the patients' healthcare needs (Smith, 2001a). Furthermore, surveys of patient satisfaction form an essential role in assessing public opinion of the service provided. Thus, the evaluation of the service provided by a clinic can be reflected in the degree of satisfaction perceived by individuals receiving the services as elicited by a patient perception survey. This study assess patient’s perception of the service provided at the Homoeopathic Day Clinic (HDC) at the Durban University of Technology (DUT). The use of a self-administered questionnaire to establish patient satisfaction was applied. No names were required and all data has been kept strictly confidential. This information will subsequently be used to improve the quality of the service offered at this facility and increase the degree of patient satisfaction experienced. The sample group of the first 100 patients that consulted the HDC at the DUT between July and November 2007 that voluntarily participated in this study were included in the study by means of convenience sampling.In this study there is generally a high degree of satisfaction with the healthcare and services provided. Areas of particularly high satisfaction are related to patients’ arrival to the clinic where they were both promptly and politely greeted, as well as in relationship to the approachability/friendliness of the Homoeopathic student, and the instructions given on how to take the medicine. Areas that revealed lower degrees of satisfaction are advertising, both in media and by signage, as well as the accessibility of the clinic for disabled patients.

The overall aim of this thesis was to describe pregnant women's and partners' views and experiences on early prenatal screening with the combined test, with special focus on the two-step information model. Interviews were performed with 15 couples who had taken part in the extended information visit about prenatal screening, describing their perceptions of the information model (I) and ten couples or women of those, for a follow-up interview exploring their decision-making process (II). Seven couples, who had not taken part in the extended information visit, were interviewed describing their views and experiences about prenatal screening (III). A questionnaire was answered by 295 women and by 223 partners about their satisfaction about the decision whether or not to participate in the combined test, and their assessment of whether or not this choice had been difficult (IV). The results showed that different opinions were expressed about the offer of the extended information visit. The separate visit was welcomed by most couples (I). The decision-making process regarding whether to take part in the test or not was described by most couples as a fairly straightforward decision, while for others it was a more complex process that required a great deal of consideration (II). An apprehension of the test, by some of those who had refrained the extended information visit, was that it was an expression of society's involvement in decisions that belong to the expectant parents (III). Ninety-three percent of both women and partners considered the decision about participating in the combined tests as uncomplicated, and well over 90%, of both women and partners were satisfied with their decision (IV). The conclusions in this thesis, are that the decision whether or not to participate in the combined test is multidimensional and influenced by different views. The two-step information model helped the pregnant woman and the partner to make a decision in a fairly straightforward process or a more complex process with mixed feelings.

Bakgrund: Akutmottagningen har en hög patienttillströmning och detta leder till att patienter med lågt prioriterade skador och sjukdomar/tillstånd får ökade väntetider. Den sekretess som råder inom hälso- och sjukvården förhindrar sjuksköterskan från att ge information angående varför andra patienter prioriteras före dem. Sjuksköterskor kan med kunskap om patienters erfarenheter av vården på akutmottagningen, få en ökad förståelse och genom detta ge en mer individanpassad vård och ökad tillfredställelse hos patienterna.  Syfte: Att beskriva patienters erfarenheter av vården från sjuksköterskor på akutmottagningen. Vidare var syftet med litteraturstudien att granska de inkluderade artiklarnas datainsamlingsmetod. Metod: En litteraturstudie med deskriptiv design. De tolv inkluderade vetenskapliga artiklarna söktes fram i databaserna Cinahl och PubMed. Ansatsen på dessa är kvantitativ, kvalitativ eller mixad. Huvudresultat: Många patienter ansåg att den vård de fick av sjuksköterskan på akutmottagningen var god. Det goda bemötandet, förmågan att lyssna och den höga kompetensen hos sjuksköterskan medförde en ömsesidig respekt mellan sjuksköterska och patient. Under väntetiden förekom dock att patienterna kände sig som en börda för sjuksköterskorna samt ignorerade i vissa fall. Bristen på kontakt med sjuksköterskorna under väntetiden medförde att patienterna inte fick den information de ansåg sig behöva. Patienterna beskrev att sjuksköterskans kommunikation var adekvat samt att de använde ett lättförståeligt språk. Slutsats: De flesta patienter var nöjda med den vård de fick av sjuksköterskan på akutmottagningen. De kände att sjuksköterskan hade en hög kompetens och kommunikationen var adekvat. Dock förekom det patienter som ansåg att informationen var bristfällig. / Background: The emergency department has a high patient inflow and this results in increased waiting times for patients with low priority injuries and diseases/conditions. The confidentiality in health care prevents the nurse from giving information on why other patients are prioritized over them. Nurses can with the knowledge of patients' experiences of care in the emergency department, get a better understanding and through this provide more individualized care and increased satisfaction of patients. Aim: To describe patients' experiences of care from nurses in the emergency department. Furthermore, the aim of this study was to examine the data collection method of the included articles. Methods: A literature study with descriptive design. The twelve included scientific articles were sought out in the databases CINAHL and PubMed. The approaches of these are quantitative, qualitative or mixed. Results: Many patients felt that the treatment they received by the nurse in the emergency department was good. The good hospitality, ability to listen and the high competence of the nurse brought a mutual respect between nurse and patient. During the waiting time, however, the patients sometimes felt as a burden on nurses and in some cases even felt ignored. The lack of contact with the nurses during the waiting time meant that the patients did not receive the information they deemed necessary. Patients described that the nurse communication was adequate and that they used an easy to understand language. Conclusion: Most patients were satisfied with the care they received by the nurse in the emergency department. They felt that the nurse had a high level of competence and communication was adequate. However, there were patients who felt that the information was inadequate.

A clinical pharmacy service that determined blood potassium levels was implemented and evaluated in a community pharmacy practice. The pharmacy service utilization model was developed to guide the research. Data were gathered by two questionnaires. The study spanned four weeks at two locations. During one week at each location, blood testing was offered for a fee of $5, and on the other week it was free. A total of 320 subjects filled out a questionnaire. Patient attitude was positive toward the provision of blood level testing service in a community pharmacy. Subjects perceived a pharmacy to be a convenient place for the service, and they stated that they would use such a service if it were available. Subjects stated that they would pay a mean of $12.46 to use the service. Tests they were most interested in having were cholesterol, potassium, and glucose. Of the 320 subjects, 159 had a blood test; 63 paid a fee and 96 received it free. All subjects expressed satisfaction with the service and all said that they would use it again. The mean amount that those tested were willing to pay was $14.49. The proposed model was partially successful in describing the relationships involved in utilization of a clinical pharmacy service. Demographics did not correlate with other variables nor did the two measures of willingness to pay. All other relationships were significant. The service was shown to be financially feasible based on projections from the data collected. It was recommended that such services be implemented.

No description available.

A field experiment was conducted in a pediatric clinic to learn what impact use of a sequential persuasion strategy would have on the maternal role in attending well child exams. It was found that mothers who received an initial smaller request to sign a card pledging to bring a child for well child exams reported that they would attend significantly more often than mothers who did not receive the initial smaller request. Use of a FITD technique did not erode pediatrician credibility, maternal interpersonal attraction, or maternal satisfaction with the health care experience. The pledge card was significantly associated with higher ratings of health organization credibility. Several maternal characteristics were also examined for associations with maternal attitudes in this context and significant relationships were found regarding income, age, occupation, ethnicity, and education.

<p><span style="font-size: 8pt / " text-align:="" font-family:="" color:="">The edentulous jaw is a common feature in elderly patients that had lost their teeth during life due to local reasons such as poor oral hygiene and dental caries as well as periodontal disease. Hence these patients are the victims of biological phenomenona that lead to difficulties in different aspects of patient comfort with dentures. Clinicians are always concerned to minimize these difficulties and increase patient comfort through manufacturing a proper prosthesis to substitute for the loss of the natural teeth as well as the surrounding structures for optimum satisfaction and improved quality of life of the patient. The aim of this study was to evaluate patient satisfaction regarding function and aesthetics with conventional mandibular dentures and implant retained mandibular overdentures in denture wearers.</span></p>

Class of 2006 Abstract / Objectives: To determine patient satisfaction with extended cycle oral contraceptives (ECOC) and to assess why conventional oral contraceptive (COC) users might be reluctant to use extended-cycle oral contraceptives. Methods: Patients at Arizona State University Student Health and University of Arizona Campus Health pharmacies were administered questionnaires when picking up prescriptions for oral contraceptives. Questionnaires collected ratings of satisfaction with side effects and quality of life with patients’ current oral contraceptive and assessed familiarity with, and reasons for and against using, extended-cycle oral contraceptives. Results: Our survey yielded significant differences between ECOC and COC users in reasons for reluctance in use of, familiarity with, and willingness to use extended cycle contraceptives as well as, the overall satisfaction and frequency of experiencing side effects. Conclusions: The extended cycle oral contraceptive users in this study appeared to have a lower level of satisfaction with their current contraceptive regimen than did women who were utilizing conventional oral contraceptives. The extended cycle oral contraceptive users also experienced spotting more frequently and reported the belief that amenorrhea is unnatural less frequently than conventional oral contraceptive users.

Class of 2006 Abstract / Objectives: To evaluate the group clinic patients’ visit satisfaction and self-efficacy assessments at baseline and six months after the implementation of the heart failure group clinic. Additional outcomes of interest included health service utilization and medication management. Methods: This study utilized a pre-experimental design to compare patients’ clinic visit satisfaction and self-efficacy assessments at baseline and six months. Demographic variables, diagnoses, vitals, health service utilization and medication management data were obtained retrospectively from the computerized patient record system (CPRS). Results: Eleven patients met the inclusion criteria, agreed to participate and completed the informed consent. Mean age was 64.1 years (± 11.28); 100% were male; 45.5% were white, not of Hispanic origin. Health service utilization could not be compared using the planned analysis because of the limited data available for this outcome. Medication management trends included titrating angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (n=1), titrating beta-blockers (n=6), and converting from non-preferred HF medications to ACC/AHA guideline recommended agents (n=3). The mean self-efficacy score increased at follow-up when compared to baseline data (7.4 ± 1.7 versus 6.4 ± 2.7, respectively) with no statistical significance shown between the two groups (p=0.12). Additionally, the mean patient satisfaction score increased at follow-up when compared to the baseline scores (74.5 ± 12.3 versus 71.0 ± 15.1 respectively); however, data analysis revealed no statistical significance (p=0.50). Conclusions: Our study demonstrated trends suggesting improved patient satisfaction and improved self-efficacy with a group clinic model in veteran patients with heart failure. Group clinic settings have the potential to optimize HF medication management in the setting of enormous demand for VA healthcare services and limited financial resources.