Inpatient satisfaction: an analysis of Malaysian public hospitals

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an empirical analysis on inpatient satisfaction in Malaysian public hospitals. Design/methodology/approach – A self‐administered questionnaire was the main data collection method. Altogether, 23 hospitals throughout Peninsular Malaysia participated in the survey. Cluster sampling was used in the selection of the respondent hospitals, while convenience sampling was used in administering the survey. Findings – Three factors of inpatient satisfaction were extracted, which were clinical and physical dimensions of service, and additional facilities for patients and family members. Inpatient satisfaction was found to be higher for the clinical dimension than for the physical dimension. Overall, inpatient satisfaction was high, as reflected by the high mean score of the variables, although caution was expressed in interpreting the findings, particularly the low expectations of patients to begin with. Research limitations/implications – The research was limited to inpatients of Malaysian public hospitals. A thorough evaluation of the nation's public healthcare delivery system would need to include outpatient services as well. Originality/value – The paper provides an empirical analysis on inpatient satisfaction in Malaysian public hospitals. This allows policy makers to evaluate the level of public healthcare delivery service in the country and therefore assist in policy decision‐making and implementation.