Patient Satisfaction with Anaesthesia Services during Elective Surgery at the Eastern Regional Hospital

Abstract

Background Patient/Client satisfaction with anaesthesia services is a key component of the quality enhancement. The Anaesthesia Department in the Eastern Regional Hospital provides anaesthesia services to thousands of patients annually without evaluating the quality of services despite the recommendations from the American Society of Anaesthesiologists. Objective This study assessed patients’ satisfaction with anaesthesia services during elective surgery. Methods An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 146 adults aged 18 years or above who had undergone elective surgery under any form of anaesthesia. The participants were sampled randomly. The data was collected face-to-face using a pretested questionnaire which was analysed using STATA 15. Results The patients’ level of satisfaction with the overall anaesthesia services was 87%. About 72% of the patients were satisfied with preoperative anaesthesia services whiles 56% of the patients were satisfied with intraoperative anaesthesia services. With the postoperative anaesthesia services, 62% of the patients were satisfied. Conclusion and recommendation The elective surgical patients in Eastern Regional Hospital, Koforidua were generally satisfied with the anaesthesia services rendered in the hospital with majority being satisfied with the preoperative anaesthesia services. It is therefore recommended that the anaesthetists pay more attention to the service they provide at the intraoperative stage, especially the privacy given to the patients and the management of postoperative anaesthesia related complications.