Purpose: There have been no studies employing a specific questionnaire relating to patient satisfaction following ambulatory hernioplasty. Via the production of a novel specific questionnaire, attempts were made to determine the factors associated wit...
Purpose: There have been no studies employing a specific questionnaire relating to patient satisfaction following ambulatory hernioplasty. Via the production of a novel specific questionnaire, attempts were made to determine the factors associated with patient satisfaction following hernioplasty on an ambulatory basis.
Methods: Patient satisfaction was evaluated via cross-sectional telephone surveys administered 10.5 (range of 2∼23) months after their operations, consisting of six questions, regarding; anesthetic technique, surgical method, necessity for admission, necessity for follow-up, intraoperative pain, and postoperative pain. Each of the questions was then scored using a 4-point scoring system, with global satisfaction determined via the addition of each score. Factors related to global satisfaction were determined among preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative factors.
Results: Telephone questionnaire interviews were conducted on all 131 consecutive patients. Four respondents (3.1%) expressed dissatisfaction with the ambulatory surgery. Twelve (9.2%) had been admitted overnight after the operation. Thirteen (9.9%) required analgesics for over 3 days. No patients required a re-operation, although 20 (15.3%) experienced minor postoperative complications. Significant factors for global dissatisfaction were analgesic requirement for over 3 days and the presence of surgical complication (P value <0.05). Time until return to work and required overnight admission were important factors for patient satisfaction, but these were not significant.
Conclusion: Patient satisfaction was associated with postoperative pain and surgical complications. Therefore, a more appropriate method for pain control and prevention of minor surgical complication are suggested might serve to enhance patient satisfaction after hernioplasty on an ambulatory basis.