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Transformative service research (TSR) has received considerable attention from researchers and marketers in recent years and becomes a research priority in health care. In response, this paper adapts the TSR entities and wellbeing framework to systematically review healthcare quality research on Muslim consumers. The purpose of this paper is to identify research gaps and provide directions for future research, aligning healthcare studies with the TSR framework.

The authors of this paper reviewed empirical papers in healthcare quality research on Muslim patients between the years 2000 and 2020. The recorded journal articles were synthesized using insights from the TSR framework. Several literature gaps were identified and future research directions were provided using the TCCM framework, in which T stands for theory, C for context, C for characteristics and M for methodology.

This paper finds studies that encompass several domains of the TSR framework including cultural and religious dimensions, service interaction and customer engagement dimensions and customer service wellbeing. Findings also reveal subject matters related to the TSR framework, which receive less attention in the healthcare literature. A number of potential avenues for theoretical extension in health care are also discussed.

The implications of this paper are highly relevant to Muslim healthcare consumers, the healthcare system and society in general. The findings suggest inspiring changes in the healthcare ecosystem that yields a greater quality of life (health and wellbeing) for individuals and their respective communities.

This paper advances the current state of healthcare research by identifying and organizing components of TSR entities and wellbeing framework, using Muslim patients as the context. It enhances some pioneering approaches within the domain of TSR and quality dynamics and provides a holistic perspective as guidance and systematic thinking to further advancement in the field of services marketing and Islamic marketing.

The Healthcare sector is one of the important sectors of the Service Industry. It is believed that in this sector, the customer server relationship is very critical, and even the slightest gap in the people quality may have a huge impact on the delivered service quality. Some of these enablers are doctors, nursing staff and support staff. Furthermore, the nonpeople quality enablers such as diagnostic services, facilities, hygiene levels and so on are also likely to impact the delivered service quality. It was also felt that the degree of impact each enabler has on the service quality could vary. Therefore there is a need for structured and deep analysis. The paper attempts to identify, analyze and prioritize the enablers that impact the delivered service quality.

The enablers have been identified through literature review and inputs from experts in the healthcare fraternity. The authors have explored different decision-making tools such as analytic hierarchy process (AHP), analytic network process (ANP), stepwise weight assessment ratio analysis, Hybrid Model and DEMATEL (Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) for the analysis of data in this paper. Based on the strengths of the approach and careful considerations by focus group discussions, DEMATEL was chosen as the best option. It is simple, unique, sparingly used in the healthcare sector, effective in prioritizing and gives meaningful insights on importance, cause and effect factors. DEMATEL approach converts the complex problem with interrelated factors into a clear structure that makes simple interrelationships among factors in the form of cause and effects digraph, and hence, the authors chose to use it. A case study in one of the hospitals has also been conducted to demonstrate the applicability of the developed index. The case study very strongly validates the developed index.

This research paper has found that there are people quality enablers such as the doctor, nursing staff, support staff and nonpeople quality enablers such as facilities, diagnostic services and hygiene levels maintenance, which impact the delivered service quality. It also concludes that the delivered service quality depends not only on the quality but also on the availability of these enablers. The inputs received from the experts have been run through the DEMATEL methodology and importance computed for each. The top five priority enablers are Quality of Doctor, Availability of Doctor, Quality of Support Staff, Quality of Nursing Staff and Availability of Support Staff.

The weights of the enablers have been obtained using the DEMATEL tool. These weights have been calculated using the inputs from 22 experts, which meets the statistical requirement (Skulmoski, 2007). However, a larger group of experts can be reached, and based on the inputs received from them, the tool can be revalidated for repeatability and reproducibility. Using Fuzzy DEMATEL can also be explored for further analysis.

The proposed framework to assess the service quality level of a healthcare organization is based on a sound approach of DEMATEL. The service index arrived, thereafter, can be used to rate the delivered service quality by any healthcare organization. It can be used to compare the similar type of healthcare organizations across locations. This Index can facilitate improvements in the healthcare organization through internal and external benchmarking. It also helps the organization to know the gaps, understand the root cause, improve upon them and become the best in class. This Index uses the inputs from the end customers to calculate the rating, which makes it more reliable and accurate. The overall scores obtained from the Index can provide the ranking to the healthcare providing organizations and options to customers to choose from best. The service quality index can be used by an organization to continuously monitor their delivered service quality scores and improve them to become the best in class. The research paper highlights the significant role played by the people quality and its strong impact/contribution on the delivered service quality. Hence, it is believed that it will encourage the healthcare organizations to prioritize the improvement and upgrade of the people quality over the nonpeople quality aspect.

Putting people and nonpeople quality enablers in one single model and assigning weights to them using the DEMATEL approach is a new application in healthcare. Developing an Index to measure the delivered service quality in the healthcare sector is also different and new.

This study aims to investigate the role of information normalization in online healthcare consultation, a typical complex human-to-human communication requiring both effectiveness and efficiency. The globalization and digitization trend calls for high-quality information, and normalization is considered an effective method for improving information quality. Meanwhile, some researchers argued that excessive normalization (standardized answers) may be perceived as impersonal, repetitive, and cold. Thus, it is not appreciated for human-to-human communication, for instance, when patients are anxious about their health condition (e.g. with high-risk disease) in online healthcare consultation. Therefore, the role of information normalization in human communication is worthy to be explored.

Data were collected from one of the largest online healthcare consultation platforms (Dxy.com). This study expanded the existing information quality model by introducing information normalization as a new dimension. Information normalization was assessed using medical templates, extracted through natural language processing methods such as Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) and Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA). Patient decision-making behaviors, namely, consultant selection and satisfaction, were chosen to evaluate communication performance.

The results confirmed the positive impact of information normalization on communication performance. Additionally, a negative moderating effect of disease risk on the relationship between information normalization and patient decision-making was identified. Furthermore, the study demonstrated that information normalization can be enhanced through experiential learning.

These findings highlighted the significance of information normalization in online healthcare communication and extended the existing information quality model. It also facilitated patient decision-making on online healthcare platforms by providing a comprehensive information quality measurement. In addition, the moderating effects indicated the contradiction between informational support and emotional support, enriching the social support theory.

The aim of this paper is to build a comprehensive conceptual model to understand and measure variables affecting patient satisfaction‐based healthcare quality.

A total of 24 articles from international journals were systematically reviewed for factors determining patient satisfaction and healthcare quality.

Patient satisfaction is a multi‐dimensional healthcare construct affected by many variables. Healthcare quality affects patient satisfaction, which in turn influences positive patient behaviours such as loyalty. Patient satisfaction and healthcare service quality, though difficult to measure, can be operationalized using a multi‐disciplinary approach that combines patient inputs as well as expert judgement.

The paper develops a conceptual model that needs to be confirmed empirically. Also, most research pertains to developed countries. Findings are presented that may not be generalized to developing nations, which may be quite different culturally.

The paper has direct implications for health service providers. They are encouraged to regularly monitor healthcare quality and accordingly initiate service delivery improvements to maintain high levels of patient satisfaction.

The paper collates and examines recent healthcare quality study findings. It presents a comprehensive, conceptual model encompassing research work and a holistic view of various aspects affecting patient satisfaction and healthcare quality. Although a large amount of healthcare quality research has been done, each studying a particular service, this paper comprehensively brings together various research findings.

The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) has been recognized as a “gold standard” set of “practical standardized measures” for assessing hospital service quality. Beginning with the HCAHPS, the purpose of this paper is to extend efforts to assess patient-centered communication (PCC) and the quality of healthcare and presents a scale for measuring patient perceptions and expectations of service quality in an emerging economy context.

A self-administered survey of patients in private hospitals (N = 171) was conducted to test the proposed framework. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to establish the measurement model. Multiple regression analysis was used to explain the scale's predictive ability. ANOVA was used to analyze service quality gaps and rank patients' priorities.

Five components of PCC are identified. Among these, nurse affective communication has a significant positive effect on patient satisfaction. The gap analysis shows that patients have high expectations for doctors' affective communication, while they perceive a low level of service performance in the realm of nurse affective communication. The study highlights a new means of measuring “reliability” in healthcare. Important findings on patients' priorities are evaluated and discussed.

Healthcare organizations and practitioners can improve patient-centered care by stressing the dimensions of PCC, including clinicians' affective and instrumental communication.

The study expands the understanding of HCAHPS instruments in an emerging economy context and opens avenues for more widespread use of the measures. The research contributes to the literature on patient-centered care and healthcare service quality by proposing a scale for managing specific practices and interactions in healthcare.

The primary objective of this study is to conduct a comprehensive literature review focused on the concept of service quality within the healthcare sector. This research aims to categorize and analyze the various dimensions associated with service quality.

The systematic literature review methodology was employed to accomplish current study goals, and specific criteria were utilized to select relevant research articles spanning the years from 2000 to 2023. Ultimately, 57 articles met the criteria and were included in the study.

Through a meticulous review of selected articles, our research identified and categorized 29 distinct measures for evaluating service quality in the healthcare sector. These measures were further grouped into five overarching categories, namely: overall service quality, personal characteristics, healthcare facility administration, patient attributes and the servicescape. Our investigation highlighted that the dimensions commonly utilized to assess service quality in healthcare primarily draw from the SERVQUAL framework. Additionally, there is significant emphasis on measurements related to the physical environment's quality, overall patient satisfaction and behavioral intention.

This review offers original value by synthesizing diverse literature on healthcare service quality, highlighting SEVQUAL dimensions and critical variables used for assessment. It provides insight into the subjective nature of service quality and varied sampling methods and contributes to enhancing service quality and patient satisfaction in healthcare settings.

The purpose of this study is to summarize the available pool of literature on service quality to identify different dimensions of service quality in the healthcare industry and understand how it is measured. The study attempts to explore the research gaps in the literature about different service quality dimensions and patient satisfaction.

A systematic literature review process was followed to achieve the objectives of the study. Various inclusion and exclusion criteria were used to select relevant research articles from 2000–2020 for the study, and a total of 100 research articles were selected.

The study identified 41 different dimensions of healthcare service quality measurement and classified these dimensions into four categories, namely servicescape, personnel, hospital administration and patients. It can be concluded that SERVQUAL is the most widely used service quality measurement tool.

The study identified that a majority of the researchers deduced a positive relationship between SERVQUAL dimensions and the quality of healthcare services. The findings of study will assist hospital executives in formulating effective strategies to ensure that patients receive superior quality healthcare services.

As healthcare continues to become more expensive and complex, considering the voice of the patient in the design and operation of healthcare practices is important. Wound care and rural healthcare scenarios pose additional complexities for providers and patients. This study sought to identify key determinants of patient service quality in wound care.

Patients at the wound care/ostomy clinic (WOC) in a rural hospital were surveyed using the Kano model. The Kano model enables the categorization of quality attributes based on the attributes' contribution to the subject's overall satisfaction (and dissatisfaction). Chi-square goodness-of-fit testing, multinomial analysis and power analysis were then used to determine the Kano categories for each satisfaction-related attribute.

The analyses resulted in 14 one-dimensional attributes and 3 indeterminable attributes. For the one-dimensional attributes, customer satisfaction is directly proportional to the level of performance for that attribute. The one-dimensional attributes included providing correct care on the first, provision of necessary supplies for care, appropriately qualified medical staff and confidence in care provided by medical staff, among others. Understanding the attributes important to the patient drive patient-centered care, which improves positive patient outcomes and recovery. These attributes can then be used by healthcare professionals to design patient-centric processes and services. This research provides a framework for incorporating the voice of the patient into healthcare services.

While the research methodology can be used in other healthcare settings, the findings are not generalizable to other wound care clinics. This research was conducted in one small, rural hospital. In addition, the sample size was small due to the size of the wound clinic; therefore, an analysis of the differences between demographics could not be performed.

Considering the perspectives of rural wound care patients is important, as the patients are an under-served population with unique challenges related to patient care. The research findings detail rural patients' expectations during wound care treatments, which enable the clinic to focus on improving patient satisfaction. This research contributes to understanding the factors that are important to patient satisfaction in wound care. Further, the methodology presented can be applied to other healthcare settings.

While studies exist using the Kano model in healthcare and the literature is sparse in rural healthcare, this is the first case study using the Kano model in wound care to understand patient preferences.

The purpose of this study is to capture patients' and employees' perception of quality of care in the Indian private hospitals and to find the possible perceptual gaps between both the groups.

Authors have referred to the Victorian patient satisfaction monitoring (VPSM) scale and studied the responses of 327 patients and 327 employees collected from six private Indian tertiary care hospitals. SPSS v26 software was used to conduct the data reliability test, descriptive analysis and Mann–Whitney U test.

Authors have found significant differences in perceptions of quality of care between the patients and employees in the Indian hospitals. Employees have high positive perceptions towards the provided medical care whereas the patients have less favourable perceptions for many quality indicators.

This study findings help the healthcare managers, practitioners and healthcare workers of the Indian hospitals to understand the perceptions of both the employees and the patients towards healthcare quality elements and help to reduce the existing perceptual gap in the process of providing quality healthcare services.

To the best of authors knowledge, this is one of the pioneering studies conducted in Indian healthcare industry to capture and compare the perceptions of both the employees' and the patients' perceptions of various quality of care elements. This study highlighted the existing perceptual gap between the employees and the patients on various healthcare quality elements and indicated the critical areas for improvement to provide high quality healthcare services.

Healthcare facilities are entering an era of increased oversight and heightened expectations concerning both reduced costs and measureable quality. The US Affordable Care Act requires healthcare organizations to collect certain metrics, including patient assessments of quality, in order to monitor and improve the quality of healthcare. These metrics are used as a basis for graduated insurance reimbursements, and are available to consumers as an aid in selecting healthcare providers and insurance plans. The purpose of this paper is to provide healthcare providers with the analytic capabilities to better understand quality of care from the patient’s point of view.

This research examines patient satisfaction data from a multi-specialty Medical Practice Group, and uses regression analysis and paired comparisons to provide insight into patient perceptions of care quality.

Results show that variables related to Access, Moving Through the Visit, Nurse/Assistant, Care Provider and Personal Issues significantly impact overall assessments of care quality. In addition, while gender and type of care provider do not appear to have an impact on overall patient satisfaction, significant differences do exist based on age group, specialty of the physician and clinic type.

This study differs from most academic research as it focusses on medical practices, rather than hospitals, and includes multiple clinic types, medical specialties and physician types in the analysis. The study demonstrates how analytics and patient perceptions of quality can inform policy decisions.