Patient satisfaction with medical care for infectious diseases according to a comparative cross-sectional study in Grodno in 2021 and 2025

Objective. To study the dynamics of patients’ attitude toward the organization of infectious disease care, their preferences, and satisfaction levels based on a comparative analysis of sociological surveys conducted in 2021 and 2025 in healthcare facilities in Grodno.

Materials and methods. A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted using a questionnaire-based survey method. The 2021 survey included 491 respondents, while the 2025 survey included 495 respondents. The age composition of the groups was comparable (47,4±14,5 years old and 47,2±15,6 years old, respectively). The statistical analysis was performed using Pearson’s chi-squared test, Fisher’s exact test, Student’s t-test, and the Mann – Whitney U test.

Results. There have been significant changes in patients’ preferences for the period of 2021 and 2025: the proportion of respondents who fully agreed with receiving treatment in an infectious disease department by their place of residence increased from 49,9% to 62,4% (p<0,001), and those being treated by an infectious disease specialist in an outpatient clinic increased from 32,0% to 43,4% (p=0,0011). The assessment of the effectiveness of outpatient care by a maximum of 5 points increased from 33.0 to 62.4% (p < 0.001). This revealed a decline in satisfaction regarding the accessibility of diagnostic services (the proportion of maximum scores decreased from 49,0% to 34,8%, p<0.001) and medication treatment (from 57,8% to 46,7%, p=0,0015). The integral indicator of willingness to recommend the healthcare facility underwent structural changes: the proportion of «Definitely yes» responses decreased from 43,9% to 29,5%, while the proportion of «Probably yes» responses increased from 36,7% to 56,0% (p<0,001).

Conclusion. In the post-pandemic period, patients demonstrated a consistent preference for receiving infectious disease care in healthcare facilities located by their place of residence. Despite positive trends in evaluations of outpatient care and emergency hospitalization, a decrease in satisfaction with the accessibility of diagnostic tests and pharmaceutical care was identified. These findings revealed the need of optimizing resource allocation for infectious disease services while maintaining the achieved level of patient trust.

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