Patient satisfaction and survey response in 717 hospital surveys in Switzerland: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: The association between patient satisfaction and survey response is only partly understood. In this study, we describe the association between average satisfaction and survey response rate across hospital surveys, and model the association between satisfaction and propensity to respond for individual patients. METHODS: Secondary analysis of patient responses (166′014 respondents) and of average satisfaction scores and response rates obtained in 717 annual patient satisfaction surveys conducted between 2011 and 2015 at 164 Swiss hospitals. The satisfaction score was the average of 5 items scored between 0 and 10. The association between satisfaction and response propensity in individuals was modeled as the function that predicted best the observed response rates across surveys. RESULTS: Among the 717 surveys, response rates ranged from 16.1 to 80.0% (pooled average 49.8%), and average satisfaction scores ranged from 8.36 to 9.79 (pooled mean 9.15). At the survey level, the mean satisfaction score and response rate were correlated (r = 0.61). This correlation held for all subgroups of surveys, except for the 5 large university hospitals. The estimated individual response propensity function was “J-shaped”: the probability of responding was lowest (around 20%) for satisfaction scores between 3 and 7, increased sharply to about 70% for those maximally satisfied, and increased slightly for the least satisfied. Average satisfaction scores projected for 100% participation were lower than observed average scores. CONCLUSIONS: The most satisfied patients were the most likely to participate in a post-hospitalization satisfaction survey. This tendency produces an upward bias in observed satisfaction scores, and a positive correlation between average satisfaction and response rate across surveys.