Critical Synthesis Package: Scale of Patient Overall Satisfaction with Primary Care Physicians

Abstract

Abstract This Critical Synthesis Package contains: (1) a Critical Analysis of the psychometric properties of the Scale of Patient Overall Satisfaction with Primary Care Physicians, and (2) a copy of the instrument and scoring instructions developed by Mohammadreza Hojat, PhD. The Scale of Patient Overall Satisfaction with Primary Care Physicians is a 10-item survey intended to assess patient satisfaction with their primary care physician. It collects self-report information from adult primary care patients. Questions assess overall satisfaction, listening skills, quality of explanations, confidence in the doctor's knowledge and skill, sense that the doctor respects and cares about the patient, sense of time spent, and desire to have the physician present in an emergency. Response options for the 10 questions are presented in a 7-point Likert-type scale, with higher scores indicating greater satisfaction. The only published validation study of this instrument was conducted by the survey creators and had a limited response rate. It found a high degree of correlation with a previously validated empathy scale and a single question asking whether the patient would recommend the physician. Internal reliability for the entire measure and for gender and age subsets was extremely high. Mean satisfaction was significantly higher for patients whose doctor recommended preventive screenings (i.e., colonoscopy, mammogram) suggesting criterion validity. Studies are needed to confirm the validity found by the instrument's creators and document validity and utility of this instrument with varied patient populations and learners (i.e., primary care residents and medical students).

Keywords

• DREAM
• Directory and Repository of Educational Assessment Measures
• Patient Satisfaction
• Primary Care