Evaluation of the effect of introducing a structured communication model on the dynamics of patient complaints and satisfaction of medical personnel

Effective communication in medical care strongly influences both patient and staff satisfaction. Evaluating the impact of adopting structured communication models across diverse medical organizations with different ownerships remains a pertinent area of study. Objective. To evaluate the impact of introducing a uniform communication model, considering the type of medical care (outpatient or inpatient) and ownership (public or private), on patient satisfaction with medical care and staff satisfaction with their work. Materials and methods. A quasi-experimental study was conducted using an interrupted time series design across four medical organizations in the Moscow region, including a state hospital and polyclinic and a private hospital and polyclinic. The changes in written patient complaints (normalized per 1000 visits or hospitalizations) and staff satisfaction, measured by the Job Satisfaction Survey, were assessed before and three months after a six-hour communication model training. Segmented regression, paired t-test or Wilcoxon test, and two-factor analysis of variance were employed. Results. The study included 287 healthcare professionals. Across all medical organizations, the number of complaints decreased significantly (p<0.05), although the effect size varied. In state organizations, overall satisfaction scores increased significantly (from 108.9 to 121.3; p<0.001), while in private organizations, the increase was not statistically significant (from 134.0 to 136.3; p=0.063). However, the «Communication in the organization» subscale showed significant improvement in the private hospital (p=0.042). Both ownership form and care setting moderated complaint changes significantly (p=0.018 and p=0.033, respectively). These findings align with international evidence pointing out the need for medical personnel training exceeding 5.5 hours and the influence of organizational context on intervention effectiveness. Differences between public and private healthcare organizations may reflect initial staff satisfaction levels and organizational support. Conclusions. Communication training effectively reduces patient complaints and enhances staff satisfaction. However, the size of these effects depends on ownership and care setting, with the greatest increase in satisfaction observed in state-owned medical organizations.