Development of a tool to evaluate treatment satisfaction among adult orthodontic patients

Abstract

Aim: To develop and validate a tool to evaluate patient satisfaction after completion of orthodontic treatment among adult patients.

Materials and Methods: A questionnaire for evaluating the treatment satisfaction in adults was formed which included a total of 18 questions comprising of 5 themes (Communication & staff, Physical environment, Appointments, Impact of appliance treatment and Finance). Content validity was undertaken by experts specialized in orthodontics using Content Validity Index (CVI). Then, the final developed questionnaire was given to the 108 patients for checking reliability and internal consistency. The patients were asked to complete the questionnaire with the researcher present (T1) and again at the time of the second follow up appointment (T2). The first and second filled questionnaires were then assessed for test-retest reliability. Cronbach’s alpha was computed to examine the internal consistency of the formulated questionnaire.

Results: All the 18 questions have majority of 3 and 4 Content Validity Index Score indicating that the content is valid and consistent. The result showed the Cronbach’s alpha co-efficient for 18 items is 0.839, suggesting relatively high internal consistency and the questions are validated. Test-retest reliability showed kappa value greater than 0.8 for all the tested questions (except question 16) indicating excellent reliability. Question 16 showed kappa value 0.6 indicating very good reliability.

Conclusion: The developed questionnaire has been validated and it can be effectively used for further studies as a tool to quantitatively evaluate patient satisfaction after completion of orthodontic treatment among adult patients.

Key words: Questionnaire validation, Treatment satisfaction, Content validity