Assessing Quality of Primary Healthcare at District Layyah from Patients Perspective

Abstract

Background:Quality primary healthcare is essential for promoting health, preventing diseases, and reducing morbidity and mortality rates. It is a key component of healthcare systems and has a significant impact on individuals and communities' well-being. Objective: The study was aimed to assess the quality of primary healthcare services at district Layyahfrom the patients' perspective. Methodology: The study was carried out at the 10 Basic Health units selected through lottery method among 36 and the sample were selected by using simple random sampling technique. Results:This study analyzed the responses of 400 participants who met the inclusion criteria. The gender distribution showed that 46.3% of the participants were male and 53.8% were female. The age distribution showed that the most common age group was 29-38, accounting for 29.3% of the sample, while the least frequent age group was 49 years or above, comprising only 19.5% of the sample. The study also examined the distance of the respondents from the Basic Health Unit and found that 36% of the respondents lived within a 3-kilometer radius, while 33.3% lived more than 10 kilometers away.The results showed a significant negative quality gap in all five dimensions of SERVQUAL. The Tangibles dimension had the lowest negative gap of (-3.44), while the Reliability dimension had the highest negative gap of (-3.77). The total services quality gap was (-3.65), indicating that improvements need to be made to meet the expectations of the customers and improve overall service quality. Conclusion:Our study reveals a significant quality gap in primary healthcare services in Layyah district, Pakistan. Keywords: Primary healthcare, SERVQUAL, Quality, Patients Perspective