Effect of Doctor's Emotional Intelligence on Patient Satisfaction

Abstract

The beginning of this century witnessed a growing interest of researchers towards the importance of EI construct in health care environment. The concept of emotional intelligence was first introduced by Salovey and Mayer (1990), who defined it as "the ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings and emotions, to be discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one's thinking and action." EI is advantageous for medical educators and medical professionals to face the challenges arise in day to day practices. EI is a concept worth understanding and beneficial in meeting patient requirements (Carrothers et al., 2000 and Copperman, 2010). Recent research suggests that EI and patient satisfaction both are gaining popularity in the medical profession and there is a necessity of empirical studies on the applicability of EI skills in health care environment. Emotional intelligence contributes to individual success and ability to managing relationship. The ability to manage emotions appeared as a supporter to build a relationship between patients and doctors; therefore, medical students' selection must be based on academic achievement and EI ability (Weng et al., 2008). EI coaching is the best starting point for learners to increase their level Better health outcome happens when physicians are attuning to their patient's need. The comprehending importance of EI for effective performance at work is more interesting and useful. This study explored the relationship between doctor's emotional intelligence (EI) and patient satisfaction. EI was measured using self-report tool developed by Schutte. Patient satisfaction was assessed with Hulka scale. The results showed that there was a positive correlation between doctors' EI and their patient satisfaction. However, it did not report significant differences in doctor's EI across gender, age and length of service. Doctor's EI significantly predicted patient satisfaction. It has implications for doctor's whose EI abilities are essential ingredients to perceive and appraise patient's feelings and needs in addition to managing their emotions. The way doctor's respond to the patient's feelings affects their satisfaction towards heath care provider. Enhanced EI abilities of health care providers contribute to health care outcome.