The Association Between Patient Satisfaction and Patient-Reported Health Outcomes.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Although patient satisfaction is increasingly used to rate hospitals, it is unclear how patient satisfaction is associated with health outcomes. We sought to define the relationship of self-reported patient satisfaction and health outcomes.

Design

Retrospective cross-sectional analysis using regression analyses and generalized linear modeling.

Setting

Utilizing the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Database (2010-2014), patients who had responses to survey questions related to satisfaction were identified.

Participants

Among the 9166 patients, representing 106 million patients, satisfaction was rated as optimal (28.2%), average (61.1%), and poor (10.7%). Main Outcome Measures: We sought to define the relationship of self-reported patient satisfaction and health outcomes.

Results

Patients who were younger, male, black/African American, with Medicaid insurance, as well as patients with lower socioeconomic status were more likely to report poor satisfaction (all P < .001). In the adjusted model, physical health score was not associated with an increased odds of poor satisfaction (1.42 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.88-2.28); however, patients with a poor mental health score or ?2 emergency department visits were more likely to report poor overall satisfaction (3.91, 95% CI: 2.34-6.5; 2.24, 95% CI: 1.48-3.38, respectively).

Conclusion

Poor satisfaction was associated with certain unmodifiable patient-level characteristics, as well as mental health scores. These data suggest that patient satisfaction is a complex metric that can be affected by more than provider performance.

SUBMITTER: Chen Q 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6739681 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature