Oesterle, Tyler S

Abstract IntroductionPatient satisfaction is defined as the perception that one’s general health care needs are being met. Prior research suggests that positive patient satisfaction with health care facilitates the physician-patient relationship and enhances the quality of life. Unfortunately, little is known about what factors play a role in influencing patient satisfaction. Objective The primary purpose of this study was to assess patient satisfaction (as measured by the PSQ-18 Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire) of patients seen by general psychiatry residents and to examine what factors might impact patient satisfaction. A secondary purpose was to explore the effects of (three one hour sessions) mentalization skills training on the physician-patient relationship and patient satisfaction. We hypothesized that depressive and anxiety symptoms would negatively impact patient satisfaction. We hypothesized that patients’ satisfaction scores would improve if care was provided by residents who completed mentalization training.MethodsThis was a prospective case-control study, enrolling adult patients (n = 157) referred for psychiatric assessment in a psychiatric resident outpatient clinic. The Short Form PSQ-18 for patients was the primary outcome variable and was compared to Patient Health Questionaire (PHQ-9) and anxiety Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-Item scale (GAD-7) questionnaires. Outcome data from the PSQ-18 was compared among residents who either had or had not completed mentalization training. The data were analyzed with univariate analyses and to test multiple linear regression. ResultsOverall the patients were satisfied with clinician communication and interpersonal manner (PSQ-18 average scores of 4.21 +/- 0.66 and 4.15+/-0.69 respectively). The patients score on PHQ-9 was inversely related to their scores on time spent (TS) [p = 0.01] and accessibility/convenience (AC) [0.0009] subscale of patient satisfaction. GAD-7 score was inversely related to patients scores on AC subscale (p = 0.01). In regards to mentalization training, there was no difference in IRI (Interpersonal Reactivity Index) scores between the groups aside from Perspective taking (PT) subscale ( p = 0.029). Conclusions Our study reveals that depression and anxiety can negatively impact PSQ-18 patient scoring in psychiatric outpatients seen for the first time in a resident clinic. However, this study failed to show that a brief mentalization- based training could improve patient satisfaction scores that were already quite high at baseline.