Scale Analysis

The Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire was created by Ware, Snyder, and Wright in 1976. Given that patient satisfaction has been linked to compliance with medical recommendations, willingness to seek legal action in cases of unprofessional behavior, physician turnover, and disenrollment from prepaid health plans, Ware and his colleagues recognized the importance of patient satisfaction in evaluating the quality of medical care, which led to the creation of this questionnaire.

Objective

The Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire was developed to provide a tool through which patients could evaluate the healthcare system, thus enabling necessary interventions for the improvement of quality.

Question Calibration

Participants are asked to answer 18 questions regarding the medical care they are currently receiving. If they are not receiving any medical care at the time, they are instructed to respond based on the kind of care they would wish to receive if they had to be hospitalized. The questions are answered using a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 1 (Strongly Agree) to 5 (Strongly Disagree).

Statistical Analysis

The scale yields an overall score by summing the scores of each question, with a total range from 18 to 90. Higher scores indicate that the patient experienced unprofessional behavior and was dissatisfied, while lower scores indicate that the patient was quite satisfied with the medical care received.

Validity and Reliability

The scale has been adapted into Greek by N. Polyzos and was translated following the back-translation method. The reliability of the scale demonstrates acceptable internal consistency with a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.74. Additionally, there was substantial inter-item covariance found among the questions.

References

Authors: J. E. Ware, M. K. Snyder, and W. R. Wright (1976).