Patient satisfaction with a psychiatric day treatment program.

Patient perceptions can contribute significantly to partial hospitalization program evaluation. A retrospective study of patients' satisfaction ratings and comments concerning a day treatment program using a discharge questionnaire yielded high degrees of satisfaction. This may reflect a priori selection biases toward patients who formed a working alliance within the program. Comparison with a group of patients admitted to the program who did not complete a discharge questionnaire failed to differentiate the two groups on the basis of demographic or clinical characteristics. Attendance by males admitted to the program who completed a questionnaire was significantly (p less than .01) more frequent than by males who did not complete the questionnaire. Consistency in individual component ratings with overall satisfaction with the program suggests nonspecific benefits, with group psychotherapy evoking polarized perceptions. The latter observation suggests the need for careful matching of patients with specific treatment modalities employed in a day treatment setting. Suggestions are made regarding the administration and construction of a patient satisfaction questionnaire as well as for the application of this measure in enhancing program efficacy.