Dissertation (MA Business Administration)
This dissertation reports the findings of the assessment of the impact of marketing mix strategies on patient satisfaction in public hospitals in Tanzania. In particular, the dissertation broadly reports on three objectives, namely the effect of health distribution strategy on patients’ satisfaction at care and treatment clinic; the effects of the process strategy on patients’ satisfaction at care and treatment clinic; and lastly, the effect of personnel strategy on patients’ satisfaction at care and treatment clinic in the area of the study. A case study design was employed to generate using questionnaire owing from the fact that there is an increase of population in Dodoma Region and the hospital is the most affected in the number of patients. A sample size of 356 individuals was obtained through non-probability and probability sampling techniques. Data were analyzed through SPSS, version. The study revealed that health distribution strategy has no significant influence on patients’ satisfaction. Further, the process strategies were revealed to have effects on patients’ satisfaction while the personnel behaviors and practices influence customers’ satisfaction and people’s tendency to visit health units for services. Following these findings, the study recommends the government to strengthen the health personnel’s ‘communication skills thorough in-service training and communication skills courses for health personnel in the health training institutes. Further, the government, through the Ministry of Health should strengthen supervision practices in the health institutions to regulate the communication and practices of the health personnel in their areas. Health facility management need to focus on how they can reduce patient waiting time at the facilities, meaning that the time spent by a patient until being attended need to be looked on by ensuring that provision of services starts early and there should be enough medical personnel to provide services. Also every facility need to have customer feedback mechanisms so that the management can know what are the needs of their customers, which areas need to be improved in the process of providing health services. Lastly but not least there should be improved confidentiality and privacy in the whole process of service delivery, every service delivery points should be designed in a such a way that customers feel comfortable to talk freely with health personnel and give out all his/her concerns so that comprehensive treatment can be provided.