Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis
(1) Background: Low-income rural residents in China are disadvantaged due to their financial vulnerability and insufficient access to resources, and this situation demands more research effort. This study examined the pattern of outpatient service satisfaction and its determinants among low-income a...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Healthcare |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/8/1380 |
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| author | Peiyi Lu Chunyu Yang Jun Yao Mingxia Xian Mack Shelley |
| author_facet | Peiyi Lu Chunyu Yang Jun Yao Mingxia Xian Mack Shelley |
| author_sort | Peiyi Lu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | (1) Background: Low-income rural residents in China are disadvantaged due to their financial vulnerability and insufficient access to resources, and this situation demands more research effort. This study examined the pattern of outpatient service satisfaction and its determinants among low-income adults in rural China. (2) Methods: Rural low-income respondents who used outpatient services in their local healthcare facilities in Jiangsu, China evaluated the access, cost, environment, doctor–patient interaction, and other topics during their outpatient visit (<i>N</i> = 662). Latent class analysis was used to identify the groups characterized by various dimensions of outpatient satisfaction. Multinomial logistic regression explored the determinants of class membership. (3) Results: Three latent classes were identified: 28.70% had low satisfaction, unsatisfied with every dimension; 20.69% reported medium satisfaction that valued doctor–patient relationships; and 50.60% had high satisfaction but thought that costs were high. Both low and medium satisfaction were associated with a higher proportion of self-paid fees. (4) Conclusions: Healthcare costs were an important determinant of outpatient service satisfaction. Medical social workers are suggested to be included in the medical team to help patients identify financial assistance. Special aid programs may be developed to help relieve rural low-income patients’ medical cost-related burden. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:23:11Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b6d756963fb24a8787abfe2f64b9fc59 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9032 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T04:23:11Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Healthcare |
| spelling | doaj.art-b6d756963fb24a8787abfe2f64b9fc592023-12-03T13:43:58ZengMDPI AGHealthcare2227-90322022-07-01108138010.3390/healthcare10081380Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class AnalysisPeiyi Lu0Chunyu Yang1Jun Yao2Mingxia Xian3Mack Shelley4Departments of Political Science and Statistics, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USACollege of Law and Political Science, Institute of Climate Change and Public Policy, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, ChinaSchool of Health Policy & Management, Institute of Healthy Jiangsu Development, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 211166, ChinaSchool of Political Science and Public Administration, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, ChinaDepartments of Political Science and Statistics, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011, USA(1) Background: Low-income rural residents in China are disadvantaged due to their financial vulnerability and insufficient access to resources, and this situation demands more research effort. This study examined the pattern of outpatient service satisfaction and its determinants among low-income adults in rural China. (2) Methods: Rural low-income respondents who used outpatient services in their local healthcare facilities in Jiangsu, China evaluated the access, cost, environment, doctor–patient interaction, and other topics during their outpatient visit (<i>N</i> = 662). Latent class analysis was used to identify the groups characterized by various dimensions of outpatient satisfaction. Multinomial logistic regression explored the determinants of class membership. (3) Results: Three latent classes were identified: 28.70% had low satisfaction, unsatisfied with every dimension; 20.69% reported medium satisfaction that valued doctor–patient relationships; and 50.60% had high satisfaction but thought that costs were high. Both low and medium satisfaction were associated with a higher proportion of self-paid fees. (4) Conclusions: Healthcare costs were an important determinant of outpatient service satisfaction. Medical social workers are suggested to be included in the medical team to help patients identify financial assistance. Special aid programs may be developed to help relieve rural low-income patients’ medical cost-related burden.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/8/1380outpatient satisfactionrural low-income adultslatent class analysis |
| spellingShingle | Peiyi Lu Chunyu Yang Jun Yao Mingxia Xian Mack Shelley Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis Healthcare outpatient satisfaction rural low-income adults latent class analysis |
| title | Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis |
| title_full | Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis |
| title_fullStr | Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis |
| title_full_unstemmed | Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis |
| title_short | Patterns of Outpatient Service Satisfaction among Low-Income Adults in Rural China: A Latent Class Analysis |
| title_sort | patterns of outpatient service satisfaction among low income adults in rural china a latent class analysis |
| topic | outpatient satisfaction rural low-income adults latent class analysis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/10/8/1380 |
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