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Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations?

Publication ,  Journal Article
Peck, BM; Asch, DA; Goold, SD; Roter, DL; Ubel, PA; McIntyre, LM; Abbott, KH; Hoff, JA; Koropchak, CM; Tulsky, JA
Published in: Medical care
January 2001

Fulfillment of patients' expectations may influence health care utilization, affect patient satisfaction, and be used to indicate quality of care. Several different instruments have been used to measure expectations, yet little is known about how different assessment methods affect outcomes.The object of the study was to determine whether different measurement instruments elicit different numbers and types of expectations and different levels of patient satisfaction.Patients waiting to see their physician were randomly assigned to receive 1 of 2 commonly used instruments assessing expectations or were assigned to a third (control) group that was not asked about expectations. After the visit, patients in all 3 groups were asked about their satisfaction and services they received.The study subjects were 290 male, primary care outpatients in a VA general medicine clinic.A "short" instrument asked about 3 general expectations for tests, referrals, and new medications, while a "long" instrument nested similar questions within a more detailed list. Wording also differed between the 2 instruments. The short instrument asked patients what they wanted; the long instrument asked patients what they thought was necessary for the physician to do. Satisfaction was measured with a visit-specific questionnaire and a more general assessment of physician interpersonal skills.Patients receiving the long instrument were more likely to express expectations for tests (83% vs. 28%, P <0.001), referrals (40% vs. 18%, P <0.001), and new medications (45% vs. 28%, P <0.001). The groups differed in the number of unmet expectations: 40% of the long instrument group reported at least 1 unmet expectation compared with 19% of the short instrument group (P <0.001). Satisfaction was similar among the 3 groups.These different instruments elicit different numbers of expectations but do not affect patient satisfaction.

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Published In

Medical care

DOI

EISSN

1537-1948

ISSN

0025-7079

Publication Date

January 2001

Volume

39

Issue

1

Start / End Page

100 / 108

Related Subject Headings

  • Veterans
  • United States
  • Statistics, Nonparametric
  • Random Allocation
  • Practice Patterns, Physicians'
  • Patient Satisfaction
  • Outcome Assessment, Health Care
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Interviews as Topic
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
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Peck, B. M., Asch, D. A., Goold, S. D., Roter, D. L., Ubel, P. A., McIntyre, L. M., … Tulsky, J. A. (2001). Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations? Medical Care, 39(1), 100–108. https://doi.org/10.1097/00005650-200101000-00011
Peck, B. M., D. A. Asch, S. D. Goold, D. L. Roter, P. A. Ubel, L. M. McIntyre, K. H. Abbott, J. A. Hoff, C. M. Koropchak, and J. A. Tulsky. “Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations?Medical Care 39, no. 1 (January 2001): 100–108. https://doi.org/10.1097/00005650-200101000-00011.
Peck BM, Asch DA, Goold SD, Roter DL, Ubel PA, McIntyre LM, et al. Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations? Medical care. 2001 Jan;39(1):100–8.
Peck, B. M., et al. “Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations?Medical Care, vol. 39, no. 1, Jan. 2001, pp. 100–08. Epmc, doi:10.1097/00005650-200101000-00011.
Peck BM, Asch DA, Goold SD, Roter DL, Ubel PA, McIntyre LM, Abbott KH, Hoff JA, Koropchak CM, Tulsky JA. Measuring patient expectations: does the instrument affect satisfaction or expectations? Medical care. 2001 Jan;39(1):100–108.

Published In

Medical care

DOI

EISSN

1537-1948

ISSN

0025-7079

Publication Date

January 2001

Volume

39

Issue

1

Start / End Page

100 / 108

Related Subject Headings

  • Veterans
  • United States
  • Statistics, Nonparametric
  • Random Allocation
  • Practice Patterns, Physicians'
  • Patient Satisfaction
  • Outcome Assessment, Health Care
  • Middle Aged
  • Male
  • Interviews as Topic