Patient Satisfaction: A Gynaecological Surgery Audit

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Objective: to assess patient satisfaction after major gynaecological surgery. In addition, complication rates and two-year cure rates between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal patients are compared.Design: observational audit with telephone interviews at six months and two years post-surgery.Setting: Stanton Regional Hospital, Yellowknife, which provides specialist services and supports primary health care services for Western Arctic communities.Results: our audit showed a high degree of patient satisfaction. There was a lack of regret about having undergone surgery and reports that expectations had been met. Two years later, 94 percent of contacted patients felt better than they had prior to surgery. Our results, although obtained in a unique northern context, support other studies which suggest that appropriately selected and managed surgery, for common non-malignant gynaecological conditions, provides effective symptom relief and patient satisfaction. Complication rates and two-year cure rates for urinary stress incontinence are consistent with rates reported elsewhere.Conclusions: an audit of patient satisfaction following surgical procedures has the potential to improve care and the provision of consumer education. Although the results were reassuring and no lapses or needed improvements were revealed, the process of audit itself was perceived by the patients to improve their overall treatment and contributed to their positive outcomes . Such audits should be carried out as part of provision of care and continuous quality improvement.