A study of customer satisfaction with community pharmacies in Thailand.

Abstract

Evaluation the level of customer satisfaction may facilitate in identifying customer needs and service failure which stimulate pharmacy providers to be responsible and deliver the quality of service. This study investigated satisfaction with pharmacy services in Thailand. Quantitative survey questionnaire was distributed to 5 pharmacies located in Bangkok and upcountry. 26-item self-completion questionnaire with a 5-point rating scale were used. 73 out of 100 questionnaires were collected. Majority of dimensions were rated as satisfied. Dissatisfaction were found in dimensions such as sufficiency of car parking, availability of health screening services and private counselling area, side effects of medication are explained, keep record of prescription history and drug allergies. Location is the most important factor which has significantly positive relationship with overall satisfaction. Most customer characteristics did not have relationship with satisfaction level except for gender and place of origin. There were some rooms to improve the quality of pharmacy service in order to increase customer satisfaction and to differentiate from competitors.

KEY WORDS: Community Pharmacy / Customer satisfaction / Thailand / Pharmacy service / Factors of satisfaction