Vol. 3, Issue 1, Part A (2021)

Background: An increasing elderly populace poses several impediments to the healthcare system because the health characteristics and complexity of care necessary for the elderly differ from those required for the younger populace, and this populace merits a precise healthcare service system. An effective and well-organised healthcare organisation is important for the survival of the elderly. Such a healthcare organisation can meet the desires of present and future generations of the elderly and support them to age positively. Furthermore, quality healthcare services should be made available, accessible and affordable for the elderly to attain a healthy lifestyle. Objective: The study was to assess the perception of satisfaction with healthcare accessed by the elderly attending the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. Methods: The study was a descriptive cross-sectional survey using a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach. Simple random sampling was used to sample 361 elderly patients from seven Out-Patient Departments in the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. The quantitative data was analysed using One-way ANOVA to establish the bivariate relationship between the socio-demographic characteristics and quality of services. Also, generalised linear model (GLM) was used as a multivariate tool to examine the relationships between each socio-demographic factor and quality of healthcare services whilst accounting for the mutual effects of the socio-economic factors on each other. Qualitative study was conducted to obtain an in-depth understanding of the satisfaction of healthcare services by the elderly patients attending the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the data. The interview transcripts were read to identify emerging themes and sub-themes, and were exported into Nvivo version 11 software for data organisation. Results: The results indicated that there was a statistically significant difference in the quality of healthcare with decreasing trend in quality and increasing level of OPD (F=14.611: p<0.001). Majority of the elderly respondents, 305 (84.5%) rated the quality of healthcare services as moderate. The elderly respondents stated that the feedback from the health personnel were harsh, they provided negligible assistance for them at the units, and they sat on very low seats that gave them bodily pains whilst waiting for the doctors. Unexpectedly, the elderly were satisfied with the healthcare services at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital. For the elderly respondents, satisfaction meant improvement in their health. Conclusion: Impediments in accessing healthcare services led to a decrease in satisfaction of healthcare. A healthier well-being of the elderly led to satisfaction of healthcare services provided at the hospital.