Quality of Care Satisfaction among Patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Background: Many individuals in need of acute health services visit the emergency department (ED) as their initial point of contact. Patient satisfaction with emergency healthcare services was assessed in this pioneering study, which utilized the Arabic version of the Echelle de Qualité des Soins en Hospitalisation (EQS-H) and surveyed patients from various regions of Saudi Arabia.

Methodology: The subjects of this cross-sectional survey were 2,997 patients who were admitted to the emergency departments of hospitals located in various regions of Saudi Arabia. Utilizing the EQS-H, a self-reported questionnaire validated to measure patient satisfaction with ED healthcare services, the research was conducted. We utilized an Arabic version of the questionnaire for this research. The statistical analyses were conducted utilizing version 3.6.3 of R.

Results: In total, 2,997 patients participated in the study; 36.7% were male and 63.3% were female. In relation to geographical location, the proportion of participants hailing from the central region in the sample was 31.7% (or one-third), while the eastern, western, and southern regions each contributed 24.1% (16.9%), 14.6%, and 14.6%, respectively. The results of the statistical analysis indicated that the central region exhibited a substantially higher average percentage score for information clarity in comparison to the other regions, while the eastern region displayed the lowest score. A shorter length of stay (LOS) in the emergency department (ED), male gender (B = -1.63 and P < 0.05), Saudi nationality (B = -3.81 and P < 0.05), a worse perceived health state (B = -2.19 and P < 0.001), and lower scores on the life satisfaction scale were all significantly correlated with decreased levels of satisfaction with ED services. The most robust indicator of contentment is perceived progress.

Conclusion: Patients admitted to emergency departments (EDs) across various regions of Saudi Arabia expressed moderate levels of satisfaction with regard to both the lucidity of information and the association with staff. Notably, the central region exhibited superior outcomes in this regard.