PATIENT WAITING TIME ANALYSIS AT SERVICE POINTS IN THE ULTRASOUND UNIT OF A NIGERIAN TEACHING HOSPITAL

Background: Quality of service, as perceived by patients in any healthcare facility is to a great extent, dependent on the waiting time. Reducing patients' waiting time increases patients' satisfaction and improves system efficiency. Purpose: To measure and analyze the waiting time of patients at the service points in the ultrasound unit of a Nigerian tertiary hospital and to determine the mean examination time for the different ultrasound investigations carried out. Methods: This prospective cross-sectional study was carried out in the ultrasound unit of the Radiology department at University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) Ituku/Ozalla, Enugu. The waiting and examination times of patients were measured directly through observation of system operations. The waiting time at the various service points identified as costing, update, payment and examination were recorded. Mean, range and standard deviation of waiting and service times formed the descriptive statistics for the. For inferential statistics, ANOVA test was carried out to test for significance in the different service point waiting times, and the different examination times for the different investigations. Results: Mean waiting time was 3 hours 31 seconds and average exam time was 26 minutes 31 seconds. Analysis of variance on the service point where patients wait the most showed that the point after making payment was the most significant. There was no significant difference found in the amount of time spent for different examinations (P< 0.05). Conclusion: Timely delivery of services is of optimum importance, considering the need for patient-centered service. With information provided on the waiting time at the different service points in a typical teaching hospital ultrasound unit, departmental managers will be guided in the planning of the departmental operations, to enhance patient satisfaction and system efficiency.