Abstract

CORDOBA FERNANDEZ, Justa. Type of Healthcare (public or private) preferred by public employees in Albacete: Assessment of their degree of Satisfaction. Rev Clin Med Fam [online]. 2009, vol.2, n.8, pp.386-391. ISSN 2386-8201.

Objective. To determine why the majority of public employees working in the province of Albacete, prefer private healthcare and to assess their degree of satisfaction. Design. Analysis of secondary data and cross-sectional study in a sample of non-university state school teachers in Albacete. Setting. Non-university teaching centres in the province of Albacete, Spain. Main measurements. Anonymous survey by means of a questionnaire sent by post to the Teaching centres. The questionnaire contains items on the type of healthcare preferred, factors that influence choice and degree of satisfaction. Results. Analysis of the secondary data confirmed that in 2007, in the province of Albacete, the majority of public employees preferred private healthcare. The values exceeded the regional mean (82.5%) and the national mean (85.4%). The analysis of the surveys revealed that the most valued aspects of a healthcare system are speed, facilities and the possibility of choosing both the healthcare centre and the doctor. A higher percentage (17.7%) of non-university teachers preferred public healthcare than the rest of the public employees (8.7%). There were no statistically significant differences (p=0,728) in degree of satisfaction between the 2 types of healthcare. Conclusions. When choosing one system or the other, freedom to choose the centre and the doctor is valued first, followed by facilities. The main incentives that would encourage the participants to choose public healthcare would be the elimination of waiting lists and freedom of choice. The main improvements that should be made to the private entities are increasing the number of specialists and their qualifications. The most negative aspects of public healthcare are slowness and overcrowding, whilst the facilities and the qualifications of the healthcare staff were the most valued aspects.

Keywords : Public Assistance; Private Practice; Patient Satisfaction.

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