Determination of Satisfaction Factors for Dental Patients in Romania

Aims: Nowadays, patient satisfaction is not only related to the medical act but also to the whole experience during the visit in the dental office.The study wants to reveal which are the patients' criteria in choosing a dental practice or a dentist as well as the key determinants of patient satisfaction related to dental care services. Methods: A 20-item questionnaire was administered to 200 random subjects of whom 154 met our age criteria (between 15 and 65 years of age). The multiple choice questions were inquiring about previous experiences in the dental office without referring to a certain practice or doctor and about the factors that determine their satisfaction related with the whole experience in the office. A simple descriptive statistic was done to interpret the data. Results: Studying the lot we observed a well balanced gender representation (52% men and 48% women) as well as a homogeneity in regard to the educational background (34% were highly educated, 32% benefited of education of intermediate level and 34% had basic level education). The most important criteria for choosing a practice or a doctor are by recommendations regarding the clinician (45 %), followed by the location of the practice (36%). While assessing the dental treatment most patients appreciate a well trained doctor (41%) or personnel attitude (37%) and only few are taking into account the prices (7%), the doctors' experience in the field (4%) or the appearance of the office (6%).Most of the interviewed consider to have benefited of a very good (27%) or good (49%) dental treatment and 70% of them would not hesitate in recommending their dentist to a friend. Conclusions: The results of the study can help dentists in the future to provide their patients full satisfaction in accordance to their dental needs.