Health Care Quality and Patient Satisfaction in Hemodialysis Clinic: Investigation of Patient-Reported Outcomes

Background: Hemodialysis treatment requires a long-term and continuous relationship between the patient and the healthcare institution. Therefore, patient evaluations regarding the services provided are highly valuable. This study was conducted to assess patients' perceptions of the quality of services offered at the hospital and to examine the relationship between these perceptions and patient satisfaction.
Methods: This cross-sectional study included adult patients receiving hemodialysis treatment at a public hospital in Türkiye (n = 105). Data was collected using a face-to-face survey method. The survey included an information form about patients' sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, the SERVQUAL Scale, and the Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ-18). The data were evaluated using descriptive statistics, nonparametric tests (Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis test), and Spearman correlation analysis. Additionally, the gap scores between expected and perceived service quality were calculated for the SERVQUAL Scale.
Results: A negative gap was identified between participants' quality expectation scores and their perceived service quality scores (SERVQUAL = -0.26). The most significant differences were found in the Reliability (-0.43), Tangibles (-0.38), and Assurance (-0.35) sub-dimensions. Participants' patient satisfaction scores were at a medium level (median: 54.00, min: 41, max: 71). Correlation analysis results indicated a statistically significant moderate positive relationship between patients' service quality scores and patient satisfaction levels (r = 0.501, p < 0.01) in the hemodialysis unit.
Conclusion: The results reveal that the quality expectations of hemodialysis patients are not adequately met and that patient satisfaction is not high. Furthermore, it has been found that the perception of service quality is positively and moderately related to patient satisfaction. The findings are expected to guide healthcare institutions and managers in providing patient-centered care, delivering quality services, and improving patient satisfaction for this specific patient group.
Keywords: Perceived service quality, Expected service quality, Patient satisfaction, Hemodialysis Patients, Chronic Kidney Diseases.