Original Research

Patient satisfaction with nurse-delivery primary health care services in Free State and Gauteng provinces, South Africa: A comparative study

Wilfred N. Nunu, Pascalia O. Munyewende
African Journal of Primary Health Care & Family Medicine | Vol 9, No 1 | a1262 | DOI: https://doi.org/10.4102/phcfm.v9i1.1262 | © 2017 Wilfred N. Nunu, Pascalia O. Munyewende | This work is licensed under CC Attribution 4.0
Submitted: 25 July 2016 | Published: 28 April 2017

About the author(s)

Wilfred N. Nunu, School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa; Department of Environmental Science and Health, Faculty of Applied Sciences, National University of Science and Technology, Zimbabwe
Pascalia O. Munyewende, Centre for Health Policy and Medical Research Council Health Policy Research Group, School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, South Africa

Abstract

Background: The majority of health care users in South Africa utilise primary health care (PHC) services where these services are free at the point of entry. There is a dearth of knowledge on the factors influencing patient satisfaction with PHC clinic services.
Aim: This study compared patient satisfaction with PHC services in the Free State (FS) and Gauteng (GP) provinces
Setting: Secondary data analysis was conducted on a cross-sectional survey obtained from the Research on the State of Nursing Project run by the Centre for Health Policy in 2012.
Methods: A pre-tested satisfaction survey questionnaire with questions on facility evaluation, experience with providers and receipt of medication was administered to 1110 systematically randomly sampled adult patients attending antiretroviral, hypertension, diabetes and tuberculosis services.
Results: Of 1110 respondents, 1096 responded to the patient satisfaction survey signifying a 98.8% response rate. Over 60% of respondents were women in both provinces. Over 90% of patients were satisfied with PHC services in both provinces. Factors associated with satisfaction in GP and FS were time spent waiting for consultation, nurses listened, being given information on condition and being treated politely. Having privacy respected came out as a significant factor in FS.
Conclusions: High levels of satisfaction with PHC services were experienced by study participants in both provinces. Satisfied patients adhere to treatment plans and have better health-seeking behaviour, which translates to improved clinical outcomes. Therefore, nurses should continue listening, respecting and treating their patients with politeness, and also implement efficient work schedules to reduce patient waiting times.

Keywords

Primary Health Care; Patient Satisfaction; Province; Gauteng ; Free State; South Africa

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Crossref Citations

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