Factors affecting dental service quality

PURPOSE: Measuring dental clinic service quality is the first and most important factor in improving care. The quality provided plays an important role in patient satisfaction. The purpose of this paper is to identify factors affecting dental service quality from the patients' viewpoint. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study was conducted in a dental clinic in Tehran between January and June 2014. A sample of 385 patients was selected from two work shifts using stratified sampling proportional to size and simple random sampling methods. The data were collected, a self-administered questionnaire designed for the purpose of the study, based on the Parasuraman and Zeithaml's model of service quality which consisted of two parts: the patients' demographic characteristics and a 30-item questionnaire to measure the five dimensions of the service quality. The collected data were analysed using SPSS 21.0 and Amos 18.0 through some descriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation, as well as analytical methods, including confirmatory factor. FINDINGS: Results showed that the correlation coefficients for all dimensions were higher than 0.5. In this model, assurance (regression weight=0.99) and tangibility (regression weight=0.86) had, respectively, the highest and lowest effects on dental service quality. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS: The Parasuraman and Zeithaml's model is suitable to measure quality in dental services. The variables related to dental services quality have been made according to the model. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: This is a pioneering study that uses Parasuraman and Zeithaml's model and CFA in a dental setting. This study provides useful insights and guidance for dental service quality assurance.