Gap Analysis between Patients’ Expectations and Services Provided by Pharmacy Store of a Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

ABSTRACT Pharmacy store of hospital is among one the major revenue generating area of hospital. Its performance can be a vital element in the success of any upcoming hospital. Nowadays, not only the availability of prescribed drugs matters but explanation of dose, frequency and duration of drugs to be taken, behavior of pharmacist and waiting time to get drugs play an important role in satisfaction of patients. The pharmacy store of the hospital provides more specialized and more time-saving services for patients. It also eases the financial burden on pharmacy users via drug discounts. A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted on 90 respondents. A self administered predesigned, pretested, structured questionnaire was given to selected respondents on first contact to the pharmacy store of the hospital with the aim to study the perception of patients and hospital on various parameters. Seventy-one percent respondents appreciated the accessibility to pharmacy. When segregated by sociodemographic characteristics females showed greater level of satisfaction than males, respondents above 50 years of age, respondents who were unmarried, those who had came for a follow-up were most satisfied with services. Eighty-six percent respondents appreciated the politeness in communication by pharmacists. There was some discordance between the perception of patients and the perception of hospital in accessibility to pharmacy. A large number of respondents were satisfied with clarity and brevity of information given by pharmacy staff, the presence of pharmacist, and availability of prescribed drugs. How to cite this article Bajpai J, Gurbani NK. Gap Analysis between Patients’ Expectations and Services Provided by Pharmacy Store of a Tertiary Care Hospital. Int J Res Foundation Hosp Healthc Adm 2014;2(2):73-78.