Trends in patient perception of hospital care quality

PURPOSE: The purpose of this paper is to investigate trends in patient hospital quality perceptions between 1999 and 2010. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: Original data from 11 cross-sectional surveys carried out in a French single university hospital were analyzed. Based on responses to a 29-item survey instrument, overall and subscale perception scores (range 0-10) were computed covering six key hospital care quality dimensions. FINDINGS: Of 16,516 surveyed patients, 10,704 (64.8 percent) participated in the study. The median overall patient perception score decreased from 7.86 (25th-75th percentiles, 6.67-8.85) in 1999 to 7.82 (25th-75th percentiles, 6.67-8.74) in 2010 (p for trend < 0.001). A decreasing trend was observed for the living arrangement subscale score (from 7.78 in 1999 to 7.50 in 2010, p for trend < 0.001). Food service and room comfort perceptions deteriorated over the study period while patients increasingly reported better explanations before being examined. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: Patient perception scores may disguise divergent judgments on different care aspect while individual items highlight specific areas with room for improvement. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: Despite growing pressure on healthcare expenditure, this single-center study showed only modest reduction in patients' hospital-care perceptions in the 2000s.