Last update:
22-Nov-2025

OBJECTIVE The present study aimed to investigate the perceived quality of communication between health service users and public hospital administrators.

METHOD Totally, 525 questionnaires were collected from health service recipients who visited a general hospital in Greece and contacted administrators of the emergency department, office for regular outpatient clinics, outpatient appointments and patient accounting office. The Health Care Communication Questionnaire (HCCQ) tool was used for the collection.

RESULTS A total of 525 health service users who contacted administrators in the emergency department, office for regular outpatient clinics, outpatient appointments and patient accounting office were surveyed. The results showed that respondents seemed to be more in agreement with the view that administrators showed respect for their privacy, as well as that they were able to remain calm. To a lesser extent, they seemed to agree with expressions that the administrator they contacted addressed them with a smile. The answers varied depending on the communication segment as respondents showed varying degrees of satisfaction. The departments showed a greater degree of satisfaction at all scales office of emergency movement, office for regular outpatient clinics and patient accounting office, and less degree of satisfaction at the outpatient appointments mainly on the scales of non-verbal communication and respect.

CONCLUSIONS The results of this research can constitute an indirect and subjective indicator of the quality of health services provided, as provided by the administrative staff of a public hospital and play an important role in decisions and administrative initiatives to improve quality.

Key words: Administrators, Communication, Health service users, Quality of communication.