A SURVEY OF PARENTS SATISFACTION WITH THEIR CHILDRENS HOSPITALIZATIONON A PSYCHIATRIC UNIT

A 38-item survey, the Inpatient Discharge Questionnaire (IDQ), was dev eloped by the nursing staff of an inpatient psychiatric unit to sample parents' satisfaction with their children's hospitalization. The resu lts for the Ist year showed very high levels of satisfaction on the Ad mission, Assessment, Treatment, and Discharge subscales. Examination o f the ratings across quarters revealed that 2 of the subscales, Admiss ion and Assessment, fell below 80% satisfaction during the year. Speci fic areas of dissatisfaction were identified. The IDQ is a useful inst rument for surveying parent satisfaction and identifying areas for pro gram improvement.