Survey of patient satisfaction with obstetric ultrasound service at University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria

Abstract

A semi-structured questionnaire study of 326 randomly selected pregnant women referred for ultrasound examination at the ultrasound Laboratory of University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH), Enugu was undertaken. The main objectives of this survey included assessment of women's perception and satisfaction with obstetric ultrasound service at UNTH, Enugu and to reflect on our practice. Questions were asked about gestational age, reasons for the scan, information provided before and during the scan, the women's expectations when attending for the scan, their waiting time, their opinion regarding the scan service and suggestions to improve services. Results showed that majority of the patients (66%, N = 215) were not given adequate in formation required to make a knowledgeable decision about their scan. Large number of the women (67.5%, N = 220) waited for a long time (1-4 hours) before their scan. About half of the respondents (53%, N = 173) were satisfied with the way the result of the scan was communicated to them. Results suggest that full implementation of informed consent, reduced waiting time, better communication, explanation and counseling of scan findings to patients would improve the quality of our obstetric ultrasound service.

Keywords: patient satisfaction survey, patient care, obstetric ultrasound service

Nigerian Journal of Health and Biomedical Sciences Vol. 5(1) 2006: 93-97