Operational and communication determinants of patient satisfaction: A cross-sectional analysis framed by Donabedian’s model

Objectives: To identify operational and communication-related determinants of outpatient satisfaction in a sub-divisional hospital in West Bengal using Donabedian’s structure-process-outcome framework. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 273 adult outpatients using a structured, pre-validated questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests, and binary logistic regression were applied to examine factors associated with patient satisfaction. Results: Overall satisfaction was high (91%). Education level showed a significant association with satisfaction ( P = 0.002), while gender did not. Understanding medication instructions emerged as the strongest predictor of high satisfaction, (OR 14.37, P < 0.001). The logistic regression model demonstrated good classification accuracy (92.7%). Conclusion: Communication processes, particularly clarity of medication instructions, are the strongest determinants of outpatient satisfaction in this setting. Although structural limitations exist, process-level improvements may substantially enhance patient experience..