DISSERTATION O Attribution
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COPYRIGHT AND CITATION CONSIDERATIONS FOR THIS THESIS/ DISSERTATION o Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. o NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. o ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. How to cite this thesis Surname, Initial(s). (2012) Title of the thesis or dissertation. PhD. (Chemistry)/ M.Sc. (Physics)/ M.A. (Philosophy)/M.Com. (Finance) etc. [Unpublished]: University of Johannesburg. Retrieved from: https://ujdigispace.uj.ac.za (Accessed: Date). SERVICE QUALITY AT A MILITARY HOSPITAL BY PONCE KOKOU MINOR DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree MAGISTER COMMERCII in BUSINESS MANAGEMENT in the FACULTY OF MANAGEMENT at the UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG Supervisor: Prof Mornay Roberts-Lombard Co-supervisor: Dr Estelle van Tonder JANUARY 2014 ABSTRACT With the raise of competition in the Gabonese health industry and increased costs, most health service providers in Gabon have become under pressure to deliver good service quality. This also relates to the military hospital in Libreville in Gabon striving to provide adequate health services to its patients. The cost for hospitals to attract patients through several means such as providing good service quality has become crucial. Patient loyalty and retention can have an important financial advantage for a hospital, thus it has become essential for hospitals to create a sustaining relationship with their patients. The question of assessing service quality presents itself. This study investigated service quality at a military hospital in Libreville in Gabon. It was the objective of this study to establish if there is a difference in how patients rate doctors and nurses on the service quality dimensions. This research was quantitative and descriptive in nature. Theory relating to service quality and patient satisfaction was provided. The population for the study consisted of patients who were at least 18 years old, males and females, who have experienced medical services and stayed over at the military hospital for at least one night. A self- administered questionnaire was designed based on the theoretical literature illustrated in the study. The questionnaire assessed various elements that were identified through the literature review. The questionnaire was based on a set of statements linked to the literature theory, and a 7-point Likert scale which enabled respondents to choose from seven different alternatives ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. A number of statistical analysis techniques were undertaken to achieve the objectives of the study, such as factor analysis. The conclusion and findings of the research assisted in explaining the objectives of the study and the results of the statistical analysis were found to reject the hypotheses that there is no significant difference in how patients rate the reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy of doctors and nurses and to reject the hypothesis that patients do not have a positive perception of the tangible aspects of a military hospital in Libreville, Gabon.In terms of the doctors’ services, patients felt a need for more privacy in terms of the confidentiality of their treatment, a need for more individual attention, a need to be heard, and to trust doctors. Therefore such needs could be addressed through improved compassion, communication and understanding of doctors during the diagnosis of the problem. The feeling expressed was that doctors should pay more attention to patients’ problems and share with them ii their experience. Doctors at the military hospital should develop more work ethic where patients’ records and cases should never be discussed with anyone without patients’ permission. The military hospital should employ highly trained and qualified doctors to address the trust issue with patients. Lastly, consultation time may need to be reviewed to add some extra time to better address patients’ needs during their consultation with doctors. In terms of the services delivered by nurses towards patients, the latter were of the opinion that there was a need for more individual attention from nurses. Such individual attention could include greater information sharing when a patient is treated, friendlier communication to install greater trust and respect. Such needs could be addressed through improved patience, compassion and understanding by nurses during their dealings with patients. Nurses should also develop more work ethic regarding patients’ records, and cases should never be discussed with anyone without their permission. Officials in the hospital should hire highly trained and qualified nurses to address the issue of trust in patients and consultation time may need to be reviewed to add some extra time to better address patients’ needs during their dealings with nurses. iii DECLARATION I, the undersigned Ponce Kokou, hereby declare that this dissertation is my own original work. It has not been presented or submitted before for any degree at this or at any other university. Any assistance received in preparing this work has been duly acknowledged in this dissertation. It is submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce in Business Management at the University of Johannesburg. …………………………………….. ………………………………………………. Signature (Day, month, year) iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I thank the almighty God, Jesus Christ, for giving me his love, strength, wisdom, courage, determination and inspiration, without which I would never been able to complete this work. Also, I would like to thank the following people for their involvement to this dissertation: My mother and father, Adèle and Paul Kokou in Gabon for their continued love, support and encouragement, during this tough journey. I pray to the Lord Jesus Christ to continue blessing you and to give you many more years and reward you in abundance. Your presence in my life is all I ever wanted. Merci Papa Paul et Madre pour tout le soutien, l’amour, la tendresse, l’affection et la confiance dont vous m’aviez toujours apporté. Je ne pourrai jamais vous remercier assez. Que le Seigneur Jésus Christ, Dieu tout puissant vous accorde protection, santé, paix, et très longue vie. Sans vous, je n’aurai jamais achevé ce diplôme, vous êtes ma vie, mon cœur, vous représentez tout pour moi. My brothers and sisters Nicaise, Ghislaine, Alain, Wilfried, Maryse, Marina, Nancy, nieces and nephews Fatoumata, Bertrand, Nanou, Celia, Ruby, Sarah for their continued support, prayers, love and guidance during this difficult journey. I pray to the Lord Jesus Christ to continue blessing you and giving you many more years. Thank you for believing in me. My supervisors Prof Mornay Roberts-Lombard and Dr Estelle Van Tonder as well as Richard Devey from STATKON for their continued advice, guidance and patience. Thank you for assisting me in overcoming the challenges experienced during this long journey. The road was tough, but you drove me through it. May God almighty bless and reward you abundantly. v DEDICATION To the Lord Jesus Christ, to the much-loved family in the world, Mr and Ms Kokou, my brothers, sisters, nephews and nieces. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... ii DECLARATION ............................................................................................................. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................................... v DEDICATION ................................................................................................................. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................ vii LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... xii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER 1 : CONTEXTUALISATION OF THE STUDY ............................................... 1 1.1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................ 1 1.2 BACKGROUND ............................................................................................. 2 1.3 PROBLEM STATEMENT ............................................................................... 4 1.4 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY ........................................................................... 4 1.5 OBJECTIVES ................................................................................................. 5 1.5.1 Primary objective .......................................................................................... 5 1.5.2 Secondary objectives ................................................................................... 5 1.5.3 Hypotheses ................................................................................................... 5 1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY ................................................................... 6 1.7 LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................. 6 1.7.1