Satisfaction and perception of osteopathic treatment in the Algarve region

Introduction: Satisfaction with services provided by Osteopaths is high in countries such as the United Kingdom. In Portugal, to date, the degree of satisfaction of patients who resort to osteopathy is unknown. Objectives: The study aimed to evaluate patient satisfaction and perception about their osteopathic treatment, in the adult population in the Algarve region. Methods: In the descriptive cross-sectional observational study, a questionnaire was carried out that integrated: 1) demographic data such as age, gender, nationality, municipality of residence, level of education, and body areas of complaint; 2) “The Short Assessment of Patient Satisfaction” (SAPS); 3) “The Patient Perception Measure – Osteopathy” (PPM-O). These assessed the satisfaction and perception of the adult population resident in the Algarve (>18 years old), both genders, Portuguese or foreign nationality, who have received osteopathic treatment in the Algarve region. It was distributed using the “snowball” method and collected online. Results: 160 patients were evaluated, female (73.8%) and male (26.3%), with ages between 26-55 years (86.1%) and Portuguese nationality (90%). The factors that revealed the highest scores were: in the SAPS were “respect” (3.86±0.45) and “satisfaction with the treatment” (3.59±0.80), in the PPM-O were the “effectiveness of the treatment” (4.17±0.79) and the “overall treatment” (4.16 ± 0.97). The Spearman test correlated positively with the highest scores from the SAPS item referring to a “careful examination”, and in both subscales the “education and effectiveness” (=0.68) and “cognition and fatigue” (=-0.22). Conclusion: The satisfaction and perception of patients treated by Osteopaths in the Algarve region were positively evaluated. Satisfaction with clinical care comes from a good therapist-patient relationship and a careful examination - such factors proved to be extremely important for the satisfaction and effectiveness of the treatment.