Effects of the Total Quality Management Implication on Patient Satisfaction in the Emergency Department of Military Hospitals

Abstract

Background: Emergency services are of great priority in the military health systems and patients satisfaction is among the important determinants of an emergency system efficacy. Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of Total Quality Management (TQM) implication on patients’ satisfaction in the emergency ward. Patients and Methods: Patients satisfaction was evaluated before and after the TQM-based quality improvement process in the emergency department by using a satisfaction survey questionnaire. Participants in the survey were patients admitted to the emergency ward of Besat Air Force General Military Hospital (Tehran, Iran) between September‒December 2009 and April-July 2011. All the possible interventions were implicated after discussions with responsible teams and the managing staff during the 15 months of the satisfaction evaluation interval. Results: The satisfaction level for physicians, nurses, transporting and service personnel, and imaging staff has increased significantly by 12.7%, 21.8%, 17.0%, and 14.1%, respectively (P < 0.001). The overall satisfaction increased from 55.4% to 71.3% after the TQM application (P < 0.001). Conclusions: Considering the substantial impact of the TQM implication on increasing the satisfaction level among our patients regarding the emergency and healthcare services, we suggest that TQM can be a very effective solution in improving the health care service quality and increasing patients’ satisfaction in Iranian Military Hospitals, without significant economic strain.