[Patient satisfaction with screening for diabetic retinopathy in a hospital setting]

The purpose of the study was to assess how patients appreciate the quality of screening examinations for diabetic retinopathy at the Department of Ophthalmology, Arhus University Hospital. A questionnaire was given to 500 consecutive patients who were examined between February and May 1996. Four hundred and twenty-nine patients (85.8%) answered and returned the questionnaire. Generally, there was satisfaction about the employed examination concept and the information and service provided during the examination. Patients in the age group between 26 and 35 years demanded more in order to achieve the same level of satisfaction as did patients from other age groups. One-third of the patients did not know that eye examination with fundus photography can detect diabetic retinopathy, but not all other eye diseases. Furthermore, the transport to the clinic was a greater problem than expected for patients living more than a few kilometers from the hospital. It can be concluded that in the planning of screening examinations for diabetic retinopathy, procedures should be designed so that the special expectations and needs of patients in the age group of 25-36 years are fulfilled. Patients should be informed that screening with fundus photography only detects retinal changes secondary to diabetes mellitus.