Table 2. Patient Perceptions of Quality and General Satisfaction Scores
Medical OfficerAYUSH Medical OfficerRural Medical AssistantParamedical StaffCronbach's Alpha
Patient Satisfaction, N (%)a224 (84%)238 (80%)231 (85%)178 (73%)
Dimensions of Perceived Quality
Medical Advice (3 items)0.74
 Standardized score, mean (95% CI)0.07 (−0.13, 0.26)−0.11 (−0.25, 0.04)0.17 (−0.04, 0.31)−0.14 (−0.39, 0.11)
 Adjusted mean difference, mean (95% CI)bReference−0.08 (−0.29, 0.14)0.19 (−0.08, 0.45)−0.12 (−0.40, 0.16)
Medical Consultation (4 items)0.79
 Standardized score, mean (95% CI)0.12 (−0.09, 0.33)−0.06 (−0.23, 0.12)0.19 (0.01, 0.36)−0.27 (−0.50, −0.04)
 Adjusted mean difference, mean (95% CI)bReference−0.06 (−0.26, 0.15)0.12 (−0.12, 0.35)−0.21 (−0.44, 0.01)
Staff Behavior (3 items)0.82
 Standardized score, mean (95% CI)−0.03 (−0.15, −0.09)−0.08 (−0.23, 0.07)0.09 (−0.08, 0.26)0.03 (−0.17, 0.23)
 Adjusted mean difference, mean (95% CI)bReference0.09 (−0.06, 0.24)0.15 (−0.04, 0.33)0.08 (−0.09, 0.25)
Facility Infrastructure (3 items)0.69
 Standardized score, mean (95% CI)0.06 (−0.12, 0.24)−0.06 (−0.23, 0.11)0.14 (−0.06, 0.35)−0.15 (0.51, 0.21)
 Adjusted mean difference, mean (95% CI)bReference0.10 (−0.14, 0.34)0.23 (−0.06, 0.52)−0.002 (−0.25, 0.24)
Patient's Trust in Clinician's Skill and Ability
 Standardized score, mean (95% CI)0.24 (0.10, 0.38)−0.04 (−0.20, 0.12)0.03 (−0.14, 0.19)−0.24 (0.46, −0.02)
 Adjusted mean difference, mean (95% CI)bReference−0.12 (−0.29, 0.05)−0.08 (−0.27, 0.11)−0.30 (−0.47, −0.14)
Observations269296273244
Number of facilities (clusters)32353635
  • a Five values for general patient satisfaction were missing; missing values were omitted from calculations.

  • b Results for AYUSH, Rural Medical Assistant, and paramedical are the difference in mean scores between their group and the Medical Officer group, after controlling for the sex, age, wealth, and literacy of the patient; the sex and age of the clinical provider; and facility infrastructure and location (tribal area and distance to nearest road).