The antecedents of patient satisfaction: Evidence from super-specialty hospitals in Tiruchirappalli in India

This study explores the determinants of patient satisfaction in the healthcare industry in a developing country. The effect of healthcare services, supportive services, and auxiliary services were conceptualized in three models. After checking the measurement properties of the survey instrument, the hypotheses were tested using the data collected from 748 in-patients from five super specialty hospitals in Tiruchirappalli in southern India. The physicians' services, intensive care unit (ICU) services, operation theatre (OT) services, and outpatient department (OPD) services had a significant positive influence on patient satisfaction. The results also suggest supportive services, including nurse, technical, and administrative services, played an essential role in increasing patient satisfaction. Finally, patients were satisfied with the registration process, transportation, and housekeeping services, including cleanliness in the hospitals. The results did not find support for pharmacy services, emergency services, and hospital security impacting patient satisfaction. The findings provide recommendations for the administrators of healthcare units to improve patient satisfaction.