BY MOHAMMED IQBAL
DOHA: More than 20,000 people from different segments of the Qatari and expatriate populations are expected to take part in the first nationwide survey to be conducted by the Supreme Council of Health (SCH) to assess patients’ satisfaction with the private and public healthcare facilities in the country.
The survey, to be conducted with support from an international company, will cover all the primary health centres, private hospitals, select private clinics and all hospitals run by the Hamad Medical Corporation.
“More than 20,000 random samples have been selected for the survey. In the next two weeks we will conduct the first interview,” Dr Jamal Rashid Al Khanji, director of the Healthcare Quality Management Department at the SCH, told The Peninsula yesterday.
“This is the first patient satisfaction survey in Qatar covering both the private and public healthcare facilities, and the first such survey of this scale in the region,” he added.
The official said the objective of the poll was to do a comparative analysis of the performance of the healthcare facilities to improve their standards and services.
“The survey will help us identify the strengths and weaknesses of each facility and deal with them individually,” said Al Khanji.
The samples have been selected from recent visitors to the facilities.
“We will go for fresh visitors because the ideas will be fresh in their memory. Interviews will be conducted over telephone and recorded with the support of computers. We will ensure a representative mix while selecting the samples,” said Al Khanji.
The questions will be wide-ranging, including direct ones about the attitude and performance of doctors, waiting time to see a doctor, nature of the treatment, facilities and other related issues. The interviews will be conducted in five languages, including Arabic, English and Urdu.
“There will also be open-ended questions allowing the respondents to give their comments and suggestions about the facilities and services,” said Al Khanji.
“We expect to complete the survey in four months, and it would take another one-and -a-half-month to analyse the data. The findings will be made public in a systemic and transparent manner,” he said.
The survey precedes the implementation of the national health insurance scheme that targets all citizens and expatriates as well as visitors to the country.
The first phase of the insurance scheme is expected to be implemented early this year.
THE PENINSULA
