MORE HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS HAVE MET THE EXPECTATIONS OF PATIENTS IN 2013 PATIENT SATISFACTION SURVEY

            In the Patient Satisfaction Survey (PSS) 2013 carried out by the Ministry of Health (MOH) from September to December 2013, the level of overall satisfaction across all public healthcare institutions¹ in 2013 was maintained at 77% compared with 2012. The percentage of respondents who said that they would recommend the services of public healthcare institutions also remained at 78%.

2            The PSS is part of the MOH’s ongoing effort to assess the level of patient satisfaction, and gather suggestions for continual service improvements at Singapore’s Health Care Institutions (HCIs).

3          The PSS conducted in 2013 is the ninth such survey since the first one was conducted in 2004. The key results are attached at Annex A. The PSS is carried out by an independent survey company. A total of 12,279 patients and caregivers participated in the survey.

4          Of note is that some National Specialty Centres (NSCs) have made progress in the delivery of their service.  Out of the 9 NSCs, 3 of them (the National Cancer Centre, the National Dental Centre, and the Singapore National Eye Centre) achieved significant improvements in overall satisfaction.

5          The survey also showed that the public healthcare institutions had generally met or exceeded the respondents’ expectations, with 79.4% of respondents stating so. This is the highest score achieved since this survey started.  The polyclinics under the National Healthcare Group and SingHealth contributed some of the highest ratings in this category.

6          MOH is heartened to note that there is an overall improvement in the service-quality attributes when compared to 2012.  Among the healthcare professionals, it is noted that the nurses have improved the most when it comes to service touch-points in areas such as: (i) skills and knowledge, (ii) care and concern for the patients, and (iii) provision of clear explanation on procedures and care.  

7          However, the survey also showed that waiting time remained as one of the key concerns experienced by patients which needed further improvement. This is an area MOH is already working with the HCIs to improve upon. 

8          MOH will conduct the next PSS beginning in September this year.

MINISTRY OF HEALTH

10 JULY 2014

[1] Public Healthcare Institutions consist of Public Hospitals, National Specialist Centres, and Polyclinics.