Trust Communication With Dentists, Perception of Service Quality, Patient Satisfaction in Dental Health Services

Trust communication with the dentist, service quality, and patient satisfaction are key service elements in dental services. This study examines the effect of trust communication with dentists and perceived service quality on patients' satisfaction in dental health services.

The population of this cross-sectional and descriptive study consists of adult patients receiving treatment at the Faculty of Dentistry in Türkiye (n = 425). The research data were collected using the questionnaire method between February and April, 2024. The questionnaire includes the Trust Communication Scale in physician-patient relations, the Patient Satisfaction Scale in dental health services, and the SERVQUAL scales. Descriptive analyses, reliability analyses, normality tests, correlation analyses, and multiple linear regression analyses were used to obtain the results.

Our analyses showed that there is a positive and significant correlation between patient satisfaction and trust communication (r = 0.511; p < 0.01) and between patient satisfaction and service quality perception (r = 0.614; p < 0.01) in dental health services. The multiple linear regression analysis results showed that trust communication and service quality perception in dental health services together explained 44.4% of the total variance in patient satisfaction.

The results show that to ensure patient satisfaction in dentistry, it is necessary to increase the perception of service quality as well as to ensure strong trust communication between dentists and patients. Dentists should be aware of their responsibility to develop effective trust communication with patients to properly manage treatments and ensure patient satisfaction. In dental education, the acquisition of skills to effectively establish trust communication should be added to the curriculum.