Service quality of delivered care from the perception of women with caesarean section and normal delivery.

BACKGROUND Our aim was to determine the service quality of delivered care for people with Caesarean Section and Normal Delivery. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted among 200 people who had caesarean section and normal delivery in Al-Zahra Teaching Hospital in Tabriz, north western Iran. Service quality was calculated using: Service Quality = 10 - (Importance × Performance) based on importance and performance of service quality aspects from the postpartum women's perspective.A hierarchical regression analysis was applied in two steps using the enter method to examine the associations between demographics and SQ scores. Data were analysed using the SPSS-17 software. RESULTS "Confidentiality", "autonomy", "choice of care provider" and "communication" achieved scores at the highest level of quality; and "support group", "prompt attention", "prevention and early detection", "continuity of care", "dignity", "safety", "accessibility and "basic amenities" got service quality score less than eight. Statistically significant relationship was found between service quality score and continuity of care (P=0.008). CONCLUSION A notable gap between the participants‟ expectations and what they have actually received in most aspects of provided care. So, there is an opportunityto improve the quality of delivered care.