EFFECTS OF ACTUAL WAITING TIME, PERCEIVED WAITING TIME, INFORMATION DELIVERY, AND EXPRESSIVE QUALITY ON PATIENT SATISFACTION IN THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

Study objective: To determine the effects of actual waiting time, perc eption of waiting time, information delivery, and expressive quality o n patient satisfaction. Methods: During a 12-month study period, a que stionnaire was administered by telephone to a random sample of patient s who had presented to a suburban community hospital emergency departm ent during the preceding 2 to 4 weeks. Respondents were asked several questions concerning waiting times tie, time from triage until examina tion by the emergency physician and time from triage until discharge f rom the ED), information delivery leg, explanations of procedures and delays), expressive quality leg, courteousness, friendliness), and ove rall patient satisfaction. Results: There were 1,631 respondents. The perception that waiting times were less than expected was associated w ith a positive overall satisfaction rating for the ED encounter (P < . 001). Satisfaction with information delivery and with ED staff express ive quality were also positively associated with overall satisfaction during the ED encounter (P < .001). Actual waiting times were not pred ictive of overall patient satisfaction (P = NS). Conclusion: Perceptio ns regarding waiting time, information delivery, and expressive qualit y predict overall patient satisfaction, but actual waiting times do no t. Providing information, projecting expressive quality, and managing waiting time perceptions and expectations may be a more effective stra tegy to achieve improved patient satisfaction in the ED than decreasin g actual waiting time.