Abstract

Background: Satisfaction with family physician services is one of the most important indicators of effectiveness and quality of services in health centers and increasing customer satisfaction leads to outcomes such as commitment to health, responsibility and follow-up care in health centers. The aim of this study was to determine the satisfaction of the people of Ardabil province with the family physician program.

Methods: This cross-sectional descriptive-analytical research was performed on 637 people covered by the family physician centers in rural and urban areas of Ardabil province in 2020. Stratified sampling was performed, and data were collected using a valid and reliable questionnaire in an interview and were analyzed using SPSS software version 21 and independent t-test and one-way analysis of variance.

Results: Out of 637 participants in this study, 332 (52.1%) were male, 534 (83.8%) were married, and 508 (79.7%) had rural insurance. In general, the satisfaction score of the family physician program was 17.83 ±2.63 out of 20, and there was a significant difference in the mean score of general satisfaction among the towns (p = 0.001). There was also a significant difference in the level of satisfaction with the time spent by the physician, the status of access to the physician, satisfaction with the waiting time to receive services, satisfaction with the cost of receiving services, satisfaction with staff behavior, and satisfaction with midwifery services among the towns ( 05/0 <p).

Conclusion: Despite the fact that people were satisfied with the family physician program, health planners need to pay attention to issues such as public access to the family physician, the quality of services received from physicians and midwives and the waiting time to receive services.