Patient satisfaction with specialty internet hospital services in Shanghai: an analysis based on a five-dimensional service quality model

Objective To evaluate patient satisfaction with Shanghai’s specialty internet hospitals, this study identifies key drivers, priority areas for improvement, and actionable recommendations.Methods Patients with online consultations from June 2023 to June 2025 were included. A SERVQUAL-based five-dimensional questionnaire was administered and analyzed using multiple statistical methods.Results A total of 6,065 valid questionnaires were collected. The overall service satisfaction score was 3.87 out of 5, with the highest score in the Tangibles dimension (4.04) and the lowest in the Responsiveness dimension (3.73). Female patients were 1.446 times more likely to be satisfied with Internet hospital services than male patients. Patients with a monthly income of ≥15,001 CNY (OR = 0.500, 95% CI: 0.324–0.773, p = 0.002) were less likely to be satisfied than those with a monthly income of ≤3,000 CNY. Students (OR = 0.308, 95% CI: 0.128–0.740, p = 0.008) were less likely to be satisfied than government employees. Age group and education level showed no statistically significant association with overall satisfaction (p > 0.05).Conclusions Future specialty internet hospital services should place greater emphasis on improving service quality through technological empowerment and institutional innovation to effectively enhance patient satisfaction.