THE EFFECT OF SERVICE QUALITY ON HEALTH SECTOR CUSTOMER LOYALTY A CASE OF NHIF-CERTIFIED HEALTH FACILITIES IN MWANZA CITY, TANZANIA

The paper highlights a significant concern regarding the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty in health insurance facilities in Mwanza City. By understanding the impact of service quality dimensions on customer loyalty, this research aims to provide insights for healthcare providers to enhance patient satisfaction and retention. The primary objective of the research was to examine how various dimensions of service quality impact customer loyalty towards NHIF services. The examination focused on five key aspects of service quality: reliability, assurance, tangibility, responsiveness, and empathy, utilizing both regression and descriptive analyses alongside primary and secondary data collection methods. Findings indicate that tangibility, assurance, empathy, and reliability are statistically significant contributors to enhancing customer loyalty. This suggests that patients generally hold a favorable perception of the services offered by accredited health facilities, which in turn affects their view of NHIF services. The results underscore the importance of these facilities in helping NHIF formulate strategies to ensure high-quality service delivery to its clients. Moreover, the study reveals a positive correlation between service reliability and patient loyalty concerning the curative services provided by authorized medical facilities. This relationship indicates that improving service reliability could bolster patient loyalty. However, the analysis also identifies responsiveness as a factor that does not significantly influence patient satisfaction. The findings suggest that enhancing regulatory review and training to service providers in relation to five dimension of service quality is essential with particular emphasize on responsiveness . Overall, the study provides valuable insights for NHIF and healthcare providers in Tanzania to enhance service quality and customer satisfaction.