Address correspondence to Megan K. Beckett, Ph.D., RAND Corporation, 1776 Main Street, PO Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138; e-mail: beckett@rand.org. Marc N. Elliott, Ph.D., is with the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA. Andrea Richardson, M.P.H., and Rita Mangione-Smith, M.D., M.P.H., are with the Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
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Outpatient Satisfaction: The Role of Nominal versus Perceived Communication
Article first published online: 27 JUL 2009
DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-6773.2009.01001.x
© Health Research and Educational Trust
Additional Information
How to Cite
Beckett, M. K., Elliott, M. N., Richardson, A. and Mangione-Smith, R. (2009), Outpatient Satisfaction: The Role of Nominal versus Perceived Communication. Health Services Research, 44: 1735–1749. doi: 10.1111/j.1475-6773.2009.01001.x
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Address correspondence to Megan K. Beckett, Ph.D., RAND Corporation, 1776 Main Street, PO Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138; e-mail: beckett@rand.org. Marc N. Elliott, Ph.D., is with the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA. Andrea Richardson, M.P.H., and Rita Mangione-Smith, M.D., M.P.H., are with the Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA.
Publication History
- Issue published online: 1 SEP 2009
- Article first published online: 27 JUL 2009
Keywords:
- Physician communication;
- parent satisfaction
Objective. To examine the simultaneous associations of parent and coder assessments of communication events with parent satisfaction.
Study Setting. Five hundred twenty-two pediatrician–patient encounters.
Study Design. Parents reported on post-visit satisfaction with care and whether four communication events occurred. Raters also coded communication events from videotapes. Multivariate analyses predicted parent satisfaction.
Principal Findings. Satisfaction was greater when parents perceived at least three communication events. Parent and coder reports were nearly uncorrelated. Coder-assessed communication events not perceived by parents were unrelated to parent satisfaction.
Conclusions. Parents are more satisfied when most or all of the expected parent–physician communications occur. A successful pediatrician–parent communication event is one that a parent recognizes as having occurred; it is not merely one that a trained observer says occurred.