Development of a model of patient satisfaction with physiotherapy

The purpose of the study was to build a model to describe patient satisfaction with outpatient physiotherapy, basing this on need theory and theories from marketing research. The model was developed following interviews and focus groups with patients who had recently completed a course of outpatient physiotherapy for musculoskeletal conditions. It describes the patients' overall evaluation of their physiotherapy care in terms of satisfaction with 1) the Therapeutic Encounter and 2) Clinical Outcome. It identifies possible factors leading to satisfaction and provides an explanation for the relationship between expectations and satisfaction as a basis for patients' evaluation of their physiotherapy care. The theoretical basis of the concept of satisfaction in relation to physiotherapy practice and implications of the model for evaluating physiotherapy service provision are discussed together with the limitations of the model. Finally, further work to test the model is proposed.