Examination of Patient Perception on Quality of Nursing Care Received at Medical Wards of Private Hospitals in Colombo District

Abstract

Background: Healthcare industry plays a major role in a country’s economy and the well being of citizens. This industry is ultimately driven by patient satisfaction, which is decided upon the care received, especially that of the private sector hospitals as patients are expected to pay for their care. Objective: To identify the patient perception on quality of nursing care in medical wards of private hospitals in Colombo District Methods: A quantitative descriptive cross-sectional study design was used. Snowball sampling technique was utilized for data collection. Questionnaire generated according to the SERVQUAL (Service Quality) tool, under variables such as assurance, tangibility, empathy, reliability and responsiveness. Questionnaires provided to the general public via google forms and self-administered questionnaire (printed version). Sample was selected as those who had prior experience of being hospitalized at a medical ward of a private hospitals in Colombo district. Data analysis was performed using SPSS. Results: A total of 397 participants were selected after screening as per inclusion and exclusion criteria. On average 61.1% of the participants were not fully satisfied with the quality of nursing care offered in Colombo private hospitals as per their perceptions. However, 98% of the participants were satisfied with the tangibility of nursing care. Furthermore, on average, 52.4% were not fully satisfied with empathy of quality of nursing care when attending medical wards in Colombo district private hospitals. Conclusions: More than half of the participants were not fully satisfied with the quality of care in medical wards of private hospitals in Colombo district. Contrarily, majority of the sample is satisfied with the tangibility aspect of nursing care. Empathy variable has been satisfactory only in the half of the participants.