Abstract
(1) Background: System-level data on waiting time in the outpatient setting in Hungary is scarce. The objective of the study was to explore self-reported waiting time for an appointment and at a doctor’s office. (2) Methods: An online, cross-sectional, self-administered survey was carried out in 2019 in Hungary among a representative sample (n = 1000) of the general adult population. Chi-squared test and logistic regression analysis were carried out to explore if socioeconomic characteristics, health status, or residence were associated with waiting times and the perception of waiting time as a problem. (3) Results: Proportions of 90%, 41%, and 64% of respondents were seen within a week by family doctor, public specialist, and private specialist, respectively. One-third of respondents waited more than a month to get an appointment with a public specialist. Respondents in better health status reported shorter waiting times; those respondents were less likely to perceive a problem with: (1) waiting time to get an appointment (OR = 0.400) and (2) waiting time at a doctor’s office (OR = 0.519). (4) Conclusions: Longest waiting times were reported for public specialist visits, but waiting times were favorable for family doctors and private specialists. Further investigation is needed to better understand potential inequities affecting people in worse health status.
Highlights
Across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, waiting times have been of interest for several years given their link with quality of care [1], including better care experiences and patient satisfaction [2]
International comparisons of waiting times across OECD countries were focused on elective hospital care, but in recent years this interest has broadened by considering ambulatory care [3]
The results found in this study may be partly explained by the referral system in place in Hungary, in which family doctors act as gatekeepers to specialized care
Summary
Across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, waiting times have been of interest for several years given their link with quality of care [1], including better care experiences and patient satisfaction [2]. International comparisons of waiting times across OECD countries were focused on elective hospital care, but in recent years this interest has broadened by considering ambulatory care [3]. An example of this broadening is the OECD’s proposed set of measures on patient experiences in ambulatory care (patient-reported experience measures, PREMs), Int. J.
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