Patient satisfaction with family practice in Turkey: Three-year trend from 2010 to 2012.

Background: After the health reform in 2003, a need emerged to monitor patient satisfaction in Turkey.

Objective: To evaluate patient satisfaction with family practice in Turkey and compare with some other European countries.

Methods: The study was performed on a countrywide representative sample from all the 81 provinces of Turkey. Data were collected during the years 2010-2012 from patients visiting family practice centres. A three-year repeated cross-sectional study was conducted using the EUROPEP instrument. Twenty-six questions with a five-point Likert scale were applied. Primary outcome measures of the study were the mean EUROPEP scores (min. 1, max. 5).

Results: Mean (± SD) EUROPEP scores for the years 2010 (n = 34 472), 2011 (n = 34 764), and 2012 (n = 32 667) were 4.09 ± 0.77, 4.29 ± 0.59, and 4.42 ± 0.54 respectively (F = 1565.37; P < 0.001). The mean satisfaction percentage was calculated as 88.3%. Areas of lowest satisfaction were 'Being able to speak to the GP on the telephone,' 'Getting through to the practice on the phone,' and 'Physical conditions of the family practice.'

Conclusion: Although in small increments, patient satisfaction with family practices in Turkey has increased during the last few years.