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In-Patient Satisfaction
in Belfast City Hospital 2000
2 Methodology
2.1 Postal Survey
A postal survey of patients,
aged over 18 years, registered with a Multifund GP, who
had received elective in-patient treatment across a number
of specialities, was undertaken between July and September
1999. The specialities were: breast surgery; cardiology;
ear, nose and throat; general surgery; gynaecology; urology;
and vascular surgery.
To protect confidentiality,
lists of discharged Multifund GP patients were forwarded
from the Contracts Department, Belfast City Hospital Trust,
to the EMF on a weekly basis. The EHSSC did not have access
to these lists.
A questionnaire (Appendix
1), which had been developed by the EHSSC and EMF, was then
sent to these patients, two weeks after their discharge.
The questionnaire was piloted prior to the commencement
of the project, and covered the following topics:
- referral / out-patient service
- information given prior to operation
- satisfaction with food service
- care provided by hospital staff
A covering letter was sent
with each questionnaire (Appendix 2) and assured patients
of total confidentiality. Freepost envelopes, addressed
to the EHSSC, were enclosed for ease of return.
Two hundred and forty questionnaires
were posted to patients discharged after elective treatment,
but eleven questionnaires were returned for reasons such
as an incorrect address or the person was deceased. 149
useable questionnaires were received, giving a response
rate of 65%, as shown in the table below.
Table 2.1 Response to
survey (elective treatment only)
| Total issued |
240
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| Incorrect addresses |
6
|
| Deceased |
5
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| Useable returns |
229
|
| Total response |
149
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| Response rate |
65%
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2.2 Data Analysis
The returned questionnaires
were coded and the data was entered into SPSS for Windows.
The method of analysis used varied, depending upon the type
of question used in the survey:
- pre-coded questions were entered
into SPSS. 'Other' responses were grouped into broad categories
and also entered into the package;
- open-ended question responses
were grouped into broad categories and entered into the
package;
- comments at the end of the questionnaires
were typed up verbatim and are presented in appendix 3.
For each question, the results
are presented in both figures and percentages. Whilst 149
respondents completed the questionnaires, the number of
valid responses to individual questions was often less than
this. Consequently, the number of valid responses for each
particular question (the sample size: n) is provided in
brackets in the text and/or in the tables.
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