Health system responsiveness: A comparison between public and private hospitals in Iran

Introduction Responsiveness refers to the fulfilment of patient’s rational expectations in terms of non-medical healthcare aspects. This study aimed to assess and compare the responsiveness levels of private and public hospitals in Tehran from the patients’ perspective.Methods In this cross-sectional study, 500 discharged patients from two public and three private hospitals were selected randomly. Data collected using A 32-item questionnaire developed by the World Health Organization, and its validity and reliability were confirmed. For data analysis, descriptive statistics, T-test and regression tests were used through SPSS 19.Results The responsiveness’ mean score was 3.3 ± 0.6 and 3.8 ± 0.6 out of 5 for public and private hospitals, respectively. The difference between responsiveness score and its eight dimensions in public and private hospitals was significant (P < 0.001); the responsiveness score of private hospitals was higher. The highest and lowest difference in mean scores of responsiveness was pertinent to the provider choice and prompt attention.Conclusion The responsiveness of private hospitals was better than that of public hospitals. Patient participation in treatment decision-making, improvement of the patients’ right to provider choice and reducing waiting time by re-organising human resources, computerised appointment system and re-engineering patients’ admission process can lead to higher responsiveness.