Determining Patient Satisfaction and Well-being in Dental Healthcare: Expanding Theoretical Models through Grounded-Theory Methods

This research involves examining the antecedents of patient satisfaction in dental healthcare while utilizing a grounded theory approach. We created a model of dental care patient satisfaction and well-being and found that past experiences, expectations, desires, emotions, sensations, co-creation behaviors, relational factors, level of involvement, and level of patient engagement impacts patient satisfaction, which subsequently impacts patient well-being. These findings contribute a theoretical model incorporating extant research on customer and healthcare satisfaction while also providing practical implications for dental service providers to implement in their practices. Future research can expand this study to include the point of view of dental providers and develop a measure for dental patient satisfaction.