Evaluation of patients' satisfaction with services accessed under the contributory scheme at a Katsina State, North-West, Nigeria

Background: The evaluation of patient satisfaction provides an indicator of the quality of care and contributes to strategies for the improvement of healthcare delivery. 
Objective: To assess patient satisfaction with services accessed under the contributory scheme at Katsina State in North-West, Nigeria. 
Methodology: A cross-sectional study with a sample size of 393 Katsina State Contributory Scheme (KTSCS) patients under a formal sector program was done from 1st October to 30th November 2022, at Katsina State, Nigeria. Patients were selected by multistage sampling techniques. Data was collected using a questionnaire adapted from a study by Parasuraman et al., (1988) who designed the SERVQUAL instrument to specifically measure functional service quality using both the gap concept and service quality dimensions. The SERVQUAL instrument, in its original form, contains twenty-two pairs of Likert scale statements structured around five service quality dimensions: These dimensions are:
·         Tangible: describes the appearance of physical facilities, personnel, and equipment.
·         Reliability: deals with the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately.
·         Responsiveness: considers the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.
·         Assurance: talks about the knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence, and
·         Empathy: the ability to provide caring and individualized attention to customers 
Results: The overall average satisfaction score was 75.8%. The study found that the positive gap of responsiveness, assurances, and empathy means that patients were satisfied with the quality of the service associated with these three dimensions, however, the negative gaps across the reliability and tangibility indicated that patients’ expectations generally were not being met.
Conclusion: This study showed that the overall patients' satisfaction with services accessed was good. However, there is a need for the KTSCS and healthcare providers to continuously improve on the provision of healthcare services and address areas of dissatisfaction.