Satisfaction with Waiting Time among Antenatal Women Attending the Antenatal Clinics of South East Nigeria

Background: Patient satisfaction is a useful measure to provide a direct indicator of quality in health care. Assessing patient perspectives gives them a voice, which can make public health services more responsive to people's needs and expectation.

Objective: To evaluate and compare the clients’ satisfaction with waiting time among pregnant women in public and private health facilities in south east Nigeria.

Study Design: A comparative cross sectional study was carried out.

Methodology: Using pretested interviewer administered questionnaire, information on clients’ satisfaction was obtained from 500 women attending antenatal care clinic in south east Nigeria.

Results: The mean ages of the public-teaching hospital respondents was 29.6 ± 4.0 and is slightly higher compared with that of private-mission hospitals respondents which was 29.5±4.6 Satisfaction was higher among the public-teaching hospital respondents (67.4%) than the private-mission hospital respondents (46.4%) and this is statistically significant. However, there is need to improve the waiting time in entirety considering only 59.8% of the whole study reported satisfaction.

Conclusion: There is low satisfaction with waiting time among antenatal mothers utilizing hospital services and dissatisfaction was more in private hospitals when compared to public hospital.