Department of Health Information Sciences, Faculty of Management and Medical Information Sciences, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
BMC Health Serv Res. 2022 Nov 14;22(1):1344. doi: 10.1186/s12913-022-08635-6.
To optimize appointment systems, it is necessary to assess their users' perspectives. This study aims to determine the use of various appointment systems among patients in academic outpatient centers and to investigate their perspectives and satisfaction.
This survey study was conducted on 332 patients or those accompanying patients in academic outpatient centers. A five-part questionnaire consisting of (1) demographic information, (2) willingness to use systems, (3) problems when using these systems, (4) problems after reserving the appointment, (5) recommendations and critics was used. The relationship between the system of interest and the available tools was examined by the Chi-square test, and the relationship between demographic characteristics and satisfaction was assessed using multiple regression.
The participants' overall satisfaction towards appointment systems, regardless of the type of system, was 49.12 ± 16.04 (out of 100). Satisfaction with the appointment system using Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) was significantly higher than the other two systems (p = 0.03). Web-based application and Interactive Voice Response (IVR) were the most frequently used systems with 61% and 48%, respectively. More than half of those who had access to a telephone (56%) preferred the IVR appointment system, and most of those who had Internet access (71%) preferred the web-based application (p < 0.05). Among 137 participants who had access to both the Internet and telephone, 49% (n = 67) stated that they would rather arrange their appointment through the web-based application.
The web-based application and IVR are the most frequently used and favorable appointment system among the patients or those accompanying patients. Despite the availability of the infrastructure, the participant had moderate satisfaction with these systems due to their failures. Therefore, to have more efficient systems and increase patients or those accompanying patients satisfaction with these systems, healthcare authorities should have a plan to solve the problems of these systemes and use the capacity of information resources to inform the community regarding these systems.
为了优化预约系统，有必要评估其用户的观点。本研究旨在确定学术门诊中心患者对各种预约系统的使用情况，并调查他们的观点和满意度。
本调查研究在学术门诊中心的 332 名患者或陪同患者中进行。使用五部分问卷，包括（1）人口统计学信息，（2）使用系统的意愿，（3）使用这些系统时遇到的问题，（4）预约后出现的问题，（5）建议和批评。使用卡方检验检查感兴趣的系统与可用工具之间的关系，使用多元回归评估人口统计学特征与满意度之间的关系。
无论预约系统的类型如何，患者对预约系统的总体满意度为 49.12±16.04（满分 100 分）。使用非结构化补充服务数据 (USSD) 的预约系统满意度显著高于其他两种系统（p=0.03）。基于网络的应用程序和交互式语音应答 (IVR) 是使用最频繁的系统，分别为 61%和 48%。有电话访问权限的人中超过一半（56%）更喜欢 IVR 预约系统，有互联网访问权限的人中大多数（71%）更喜欢基于网络的应用程序（p<0.05）。在 137 名同时拥有互联网和电话访问权限的参与者中，49%（n=67）表示他们更愿意通过基于网络的应用程序安排预约。
基于网络的应用程序和 IVR 是患者或陪同患者最常使用和最满意的预约系统。尽管基础设施可用，但由于系统故障，参与者对这些系统的满意度仅为中等。因此，为了拥有更高效的系统并提高患者或陪同患者对这些系统的满意度，医疗保健当局应该制定计划来解决这些系统的问题，并利用信息资源的能力向社区宣传这些系统。
