People’s Satisfaction of the Emergency Patient Referrals in the Situation of the Epidemic of Coronavirus Disease 2019, Phayao Province, Thailand

Abstract

The purpose of this descriptive research was to study the people’s satisfaction of the emergency patient referrals in the situation of the epidemic of coronavirus disease 2019. It was conducted in Phayao province. The samples were 242 patients and relatives who received services from the emergency medical services in 7 districts of the province. Data were collected from September 2021 to January 2022. The research instruments was satisfaction questionnaire of emergency medical services with Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.87. The data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics and content analysis. The research findings revealed that the factors affecting the confidence in calling for emergency medical services (1669) of Phayao province were the convenience of service (34.71%) and the confidence and trust in the emergency medical services of private agencies (78.09%). The people’s satisfaction with the provision of emergency medical services was at high level (Mean=4.12, SD=0.59). The service system, service quality and officer personality was at highest level (Mean=4.66, 4.51, 4.32 SD=0.61, 0.59, 0.59), respectively. The problems, obstacles and need included the difficulty in contacting the call center was difficulted, absence of identification cards or self introcudtion among service personnel, lack of confidence in staff expertise, and low cleanliness of the rescue vehicles. The suggestions for improving emergency medical services in Phayao province were the use of information technology to communicate in the public and private sectors, and the creation and promotion of volunteer networks in educational institutions, private organizations and local communities.