Health Information Management

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Browsing Health Information Management by Subject "Continuity of Care"

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    Waiting Time, Continuity of Care and Patient’s Satisfaction in General Hospitals in Plateau State, Nigeria
    (Lead City University, 2023-12) Chundung Dung JOSHUA
    Patients’ satisfaction is paramount in healthcare delivery as the whole essence of all activities in a health facility to achieve the best health outcome for patients. However, patients in Nigerian hospitals often express their lack of satisfaction with various healthcare services they receive from the hospitals. In line with this, the study examines the influence of Waiting Time and Continuity of Care on Patient Satisfaction in General Hospitals in Plateau state. The study adopted the descriptive survey research with the population including 402 out-patients of general hospitals in Plateau state. Stratified sampling technique was used to select the sample size of 200 patients. A structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The instrument was tested for reliability and the result showed the following Cronbach alpha values; Patient satisfaction (0.73); Waiting time scale (0.78); and Continuity of Care Scale (0.82). The data was analyzed using both inferential and descriptive statistics. The results showed that the level of patient satisfaction among respondents is high (Mean = 3.18). However the level of patient satisfaction in regards to patient care expectation is lower than individualized patient care. The results also indicated a moderately high waiting time (Mean = 2.68) with the highest waiting time experienced in the record department and high level of continuity of care (Mean = 3.03). Informational continuity of care is rated low amongst the three dimensions. The test of hypotheses also showed that individually, waiting time (R = 0.342; p<0.05) and continuity of care (R2 = 0.0.288; p<0.05) have significant influence on patients’ satisfaction. In the same vein, both variables also have a significant combined influence (R = 0.547; p<0.05) on patients’ satisfaction. The study concluded that when health professionals focus on factors that can be helped such as continuity of care, it can make up for other deficiencies thereby ameliorating the level of dissatisfaction being felt by patients. The researcher recommended that general hospitals in Plateau state should improve patient satisfaction by prioritizing staff training and development, welfare improvement and technology deployment to meet or manage patients care expectation, should employ more personnel in order to open up multiple service points. In addition, strict supervision and mentorship to improve consistency in service delivery and best practices. Keywords: Continuity of Care, Patients Satisfaction, Waiting Time, Health Information Management Word Count: 370