Patients’ satisfaction with quality healthcare services in Omani public hospitals: The moderating role of the perceived risk of Covid 19
List of Authors
  • Abu Bakar Hamid , Ghaliya Salah Mohammed Al Atar

Keyword
  • Patients’ Satisfaction, Quality Healthcare Services, Perceived Risk Of Covid 19

Abstract
  • The quality of healthcare services becomes more important during crisis, In the event of a COVID-19 pandemic, the healthcare scenario is chaotic and confusing owing to the random and unexpected spread of the pandemic. The present study aims to use the SERVQUAL model in measuring the healthcare service quality and patient satisfaction and while the moderation of the perceived risk of COVID 19 between healthcare service quality, Resources availability, Healthcare facility preparedness and patient satisfaction in the public healthcare sector in Oman. The research is based on Expectancy-Disconfirmation Paradigm, Extended Valence Framework, and stakeholders’ theory. In this study, the use of mixed research design the sample size for the quantitative approach is 387 patients selected using probability random sampling and the sample size for the qualitative approach is 8 patients who visited public Omani hospitals during COVID 19 period. The result of the quantitative analysis using SEM and RMSEA results showed a good fit. Only the tangibility dimension of the SERVQUAL model and the resource availability had an insignificant effect on the healthcare quality in Omani public hospitals. The moderation effect of Perceived risk of COVID-19 pandemic between healthcare service quality, Resources availability, Healthcare facility preparedness and patient satisfaction among Omani patients in public hospitals was insignificant. The results of the qualitative analysis indicated that assurance, reliability, responsiveness and empathy were the most important aspects of quality healthcare service. This research adds value for practitioners by providing in depth view of the current status of the patient satisfaction of the public healthcare sector especially during COVID 19 pandemic Keywords: SERVQUAL, healthcare quality, Covid 19, Oman.

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