Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?

Purpose – This is a national study which aims to determine the average waiting time in Malaysian public hospitals and to gauge the level of patient satisfaction with the waiting time. It also aims to identify factors perceived by healthcare providers which contribute to the waiting time problem. De...

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Main Authors: Pillay, M. S., Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari, Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah, Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan, Abu Bakar, Azman, Salikin, Faisal, Umapathy, Mathyvani, Ali, Roslinah, Bidin, Noriah, Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Emerald 2011
Subjects:
Online Access:http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/1/Hospital_waiting.pdf
id iium-8795
recordtype eprints
spelling iium-87952012-08-10T01:55:45Z http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/ Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery? Pillay, M. S. Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan Abu Bakar, Azman Salikin, Faisal Umapathy, Mathyvani Ali, Roslinah Bidin, Noriah Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana R Medicine (General) Purpose – This is a national study which aims to determine the average waiting time in Malaysian public hospitals and to gauge the level of patient satisfaction with the waiting time. It also aims to identify factors perceived by healthcare providers which contribute to the waiting time problem. Design/methodology/approach – Self-administered questionnaires were the main method of data collection. Two sets of questionnaires were used. The first set solicited information from patients on their waiting time expereince. The second set elucidated information from hospital employees on the possible causes of lengthy waiting time. The questionnaires were administered in 21 public hospitals throughout all 13 states in Malaysia. A total of 13,000 responses were analysed for the patient survey and almost 3,000 were analysed for the employee survey. Findings – The findings indicate that on average, patients wait for more than two hours from registration to getting the prescription slip, while the contact time with medical personnel is only on average 15 minutes. Employee surveys on factors contributing to the lengthy waiting time indicate employee attitude and work process, heavy workload, management and supervision problems, and inadequate facilities to be among the contributory factors to the waiting time problem. Social implications – Public healthcare in Malaysia is in a state of “excess demand”, where demand for subsidised healthcare far outstrips supply, due to the large fee differential between public and private healthcare services. There is a need for hospital managers to reduce the boredom faced by patients while waiting, and to address the waiting time problem in a more scientific manner, as has been carried out in other countries through simulation and modelling techniques. Originality/value – Healthcare organisations are keen to address their waiting time problem. However, not much research has been carried out in this area. The study thus fills the lacuna in waiting time studies in healthcare organisations Emerald 2011 Article PeerReviewed application/pdf en http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/1/Hospital_waiting.pdf Pillay, M. S. and Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari and Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah and Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan and Abu Bakar, Azman and Salikin, Faisal and Umapathy, Mathyvani and Ali, Roslinah and Bidin, Noriah and Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana (2011) Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery? International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance, 24 (7). pp. 506-522. ISSN 0951-3558 http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=0952-6862&volume=24&issue=7
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Local University
institution International Islamic University Malaysia
building IIUM Repository
collection Online Access
language English
topic R Medicine (General)
spellingShingle R Medicine (General)
Pillay, M. S.
Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari
Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah
Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan
Abu Bakar, Azman
Salikin, Faisal
Umapathy, Mathyvani
Ali, Roslinah
Bidin, Noriah
Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana
Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
description Purpose – This is a national study which aims to determine the average waiting time in Malaysian public hospitals and to gauge the level of patient satisfaction with the waiting time. It also aims to identify factors perceived by healthcare providers which contribute to the waiting time problem. Design/methodology/approach – Self-administered questionnaires were the main method of data collection. Two sets of questionnaires were used. The first set solicited information from patients on their waiting time expereince. The second set elucidated information from hospital employees on the possible causes of lengthy waiting time. The questionnaires were administered in 21 public hospitals throughout all 13 states in Malaysia. A total of 13,000 responses were analysed for the patient survey and almost 3,000 were analysed for the employee survey. Findings – The findings indicate that on average, patients wait for more than two hours from registration to getting the prescription slip, while the contact time with medical personnel is only on average 15 minutes. Employee surveys on factors contributing to the lengthy waiting time indicate employee attitude and work process, heavy workload, management and supervision problems, and inadequate facilities to be among the contributory factors to the waiting time problem. Social implications – Public healthcare in Malaysia is in a state of “excess demand”, where demand for subsidised healthcare far outstrips supply, due to the large fee differential between public and private healthcare services. There is a need for hospital managers to reduce the boredom faced by patients while waiting, and to address the waiting time problem in a more scientific manner, as has been carried out in other countries through simulation and modelling techniques. Originality/value – Healthcare organisations are keen to address their waiting time problem. However, not much research has been carried out in this area. The study thus fills the lacuna in waiting time studies in healthcare organisations
format Article
author Pillay, M. S.
Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari
Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah
Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan
Abu Bakar, Azman
Salikin, Faisal
Umapathy, Mathyvani
Ali, Roslinah
Bidin, Noriah
Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana
author_facet Pillay, M. S.
Mohd Ghazali, Roslan Johari
Abd. Manaf, Noor Hazilah
Assari Abdullah, Abu Hassan
Abu Bakar, Azman
Salikin, Faisal
Umapathy, Mathyvani
Ali, Roslinah
Bidin, Noriah
Wan Ismail, Wan Ismefariana
author_sort Pillay, M. S.
title Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
title_short Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
title_full Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
title_fullStr Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
title_full_unstemmed Hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
title_sort hospital waiting time : the forgotten premise of healthcare service delivery?
publisher Emerald
publishDate 2011
url http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/
http://irep.iium.edu.my/8795/1/Hospital_waiting.pdf
first_indexed 2023-09-18T20:18:37Z
last_indexed 2023-09-18T20:18:37Z
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