الفهرس 
INTRODUCTIONOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Healthcare quality is considered a worldwide issue. In order to satisfy the escalating requirements and desires of patients, the healthcare sector is experiencing a fast shifting. The focus of health services is altering from being a provider-centered to being a patient-centered sector, taking into account the patient’s needs when describing the health services quality. For providers of oral health services as well as other medical care, dedication to achieving patient happiness is crucial. Dental health and beauty play a crucial part in human social interactions since they are essential factors in determining face attractiveness. Quality dental and oral health services are required to raise the general public’s quality of life because dental and oral diseases are regarded as crucial health problem that could increase patient’s morbidity rates. As a phenomenon, patient satisfaction is a regarded as complicated and multi-dimensional. Satisfied patients are seen as a key service accomplishment because they play a significant role in promoting good patient compliance, which is eventually effective in enhancing healthcare outcomes.
The objective of study:
The current study aimed for the evaluation of the patients’ satisfaction with the provided dental services by public outpatient clinics in Aden governorate, Yemen (2022).
Materials and methods:
The current research is a cross-sectional study that including 400 participants. Participants were equally distributed among selected 8 clinics, 50 participants from each clinic were enrolled using convenient sampling.
Data collection method and tool
A pre-designed self-administered questionnaire was designed to collect:
Socio-demographic data was collected regarding patients’ gender, age, educational level, income, and number of visits to these clinics. The Dental Satisfaction Questionnaire (DSQ) was selected to assess patient’s level of satisfaction. The DSQ is based on five subscales of 19- items addressing the following aspects: pain management, quality, total access, cost, availably and convenience, and two unaddressed questions on the evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care.
Eleven DSQ’s items were scored in a negative method; our questionnaire’s scoring rules demanded a reversal of the scoring so that a high DSQ score represents high satisfaction levels. The subscales’ scores were attained from the questions’ algebraic sum for each subscale. Then, the overall satisfaction levels with dental care (DSI, overall) were calculated from the algebraic sum of all the individual questions (1–19) and then dividing them by the items’ number. The yielding mean score ranged from 1-to-5. The satisfaction levels’ rating was done by means of a five-point Likert-type scale with 1 indicative for strong disagreement and 5 is indicative for strong agreement.
Results:
Our study included 134 males and 266 females with mean age 37.27 ± 13.40 years 58.6% were younger than 40 years old, 66.8% were married, 36.3% completed secondary education, 60.8% were unemployed.
Regarding pain management: 49.5% of the participants agreed that they avoided visiting the dentist because it is so painful. Patients’ opinion that dentist should do more to reduce pain was agreed in 68%. Concerning about feeling pain when going for dental care was agreed in 50.8%. Mean score of pain management was 8.77 ± 1.77 (score %: 48.08 ± 14.72).
Regarding quality: about 50% of the participants responded that dentists could cure or relieve most of the dental complications they complained from. About three-quarters of patients reported that dentists weren’t as thorough as they should be. The majority of patients agreed that dentists should do more to keep people from having problems with their teeth. Two-thirds of patients reported that dentists explained what they are going to do and how much would cost before begin treatment. Nearly half of patients agreed that dentist was very careful to check everything at the clinic. Two-thirds of patients agreed that dentist treat their patient with respect, 53.0% disagreed and 44.5% strongly disagree that dentist office was very modern and updated. Mean score of quality was 22.53 ± 2.01 (score %: 55.46 ± 7.17).
Regarding total access, cost, availably and convenience: 32.0% of patients agreed that the fees dentists charge was too high, 43.0% of patients agreed that they were waiting for a long time at dentist’s office, 54.8% disagreed that dentists were enough at clinic, 77.3% of patients agreed that dentists always avoid unnecessary patient expenses, 72% of patients agreed that places of dental care were very conveniently located, 76.3% of patients agreed that it is hard to get a dental appointment for dental care right away, half of the patients agreed that dental care was good for most people and 41.5% were disagree. Mean score of total access (Cost/ Availably /Convenience) was 18.11 ± 2.92 (score %: 39.68 ± 10.42).
Concerning the dental care assessment generally and caring continuousness of: 42.0% of patients agreed that dental care should be better, 36.3% of patients agreed to see the same dentist every time they go for dental care. Mean score of evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care was 4.58 ± 1.43 (score %: 32.19 ± 17.90).
Mean score for overall satisfaction was 53.99 ± 4.47 (score %: 46.03 ± 5.88).
There was a statistically significant relation between pain management and gender.
There was statistically significant relation between access score and age group ≥ 60, evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care score and age group 50-< 60 and ≥ 60.
There was statistically significant relation between pain management score, quality score, evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care score with high education group, also there was statistically significant relation between access score and literacy and illiterate groups.
A statistically important correlation was found between the dental care evaluation in general and continuity of care and employed group.
6.2. Conclusion
Based on the results of the present study the following results were concluded:
• Half of the patients are satisfied with pain management after receiving dental care services.
• 50% of the patients were satisfied with the quality of the provided dental care services.
• About one third of patients were satisfied with cost availability, the total access, and convenience of dental care services.
• Nearly half patients agree that dental care should be better.
• There is a statistically significant relation between pain management and gender.
• There is statistically significant relation between access score, evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care score with age group ≥ 60, and a statistically significant relation between evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care score with age group 50-< 60 .
• There is statistically significant relation between pain management score, quality score, evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care score and high education group, and a statistical relation between access score and literacy and illiterate groups.
• There is a statistically significant relation between evaluation of the dental care in general and continuity of care and employed group.
6.3. Recommendation:
The study provides the following recommendations:
Improving pain management protocols to efficiently decrease pain associated with dental procedures.
Increase the efficient dental training for working dentists to increase their ability to manage different dental complains.
Increasing the care for comprehensive training of the dentists regarding communication skills and how to deal with different patients.
Increasing the financial support to elevate the quality of dental clinics.
Increasing the number of working dentists and trying to enroll medical health insurance services in dental care.