ABSTRACT
Surveying patient satisfaction is considered an important part of any systematic program of quality assurance. Quality of healthcare service and patient satisfaction has been affected by the current COVID-19 epidemic. The purpose of the study was to determine how COVID-19 epidemic has affected patients in Slovenia as it is evident via permanently available questionnaire and from studying this data source to improve our response to future crises and to improve the resilience of healthcare systems. A secondary analysis of 12,756 completed questionnaires was performed via freely available patient satisfaction questionnaire in the period from October 2019 to June 2021. The number of completed questionnaires was significantly higher in the period before the COVID-19 outbreak than in the subsequent periods. Comparing COVID-19 period and epidemic-free period statistically significant differences in satisfaction assessment occurred in four variables. More patients recognized opportunities for improvement in the COVID-19 epidemic than in the epidemic-free period. This study can be upgraded with qualitative studies and implementation of systemic measures. © The Author(s), 2022.
ABSTRACT
The COVID-19 pandemic rapidly affected every aspect of our day-to-day lives and soon also became a global challenge for healthcare systems. The key issues concern the health system's readiness for the "shock", the speed at which the outbreak of the "shock" was detected and responded to, how to cope with the "shock effect", and how to restore the system and learn. It is about what is known as system resistance. The aim of the research was to demonstrate the importance of collective and individual responsibility in the response to the pandemic "shock" in the chosen field of medicine: dentistry. A qualitative study of the case of the Slovenian healthcare system's resistance to the COVID-19 epidemic in terms of dental care in Slovenia was carried out. © 2021 Slovenian Sociological Association. All rights reserved.