Title: Effects of service quality on perceptions of the professional consultation role of outpatient pharmacists

Authors: Ying-Chyi Chou, Wen-Chi Chuang

Addresses: Department of Business Administration, Tunghai University, No. 181, Section 3, Taichung Port Road, Taichung, Taiwan. ' Department of Business Administration, Tunghai University, No. 181, Section 3, Taichung Port Road, Taichung, Taiwan

Abstract: Pharmacists are increasingly active, lending credence to their role as professional consultants. Thus, the performance of pharmacists as professional consultants is important for physicians (internal customer) and patients (external customer). We adopt a patient perspective, and measures patient satisfaction with the service of an outpatient pharmacist. This study focuses on differing perceptions of patients and physicians regarding the professional consultation role of outpatient pharmacists. Particularly, a scenario-based experimental design was selected to manipulate functional and technical quality.

Keywords: outpatients; pharmacists; scenario analysis; service quality; technical quality; functional quality; patients; hospitals; user perceptions; consultation roles; professional consultants; physicians; doctors; internal customers; external customers; patient perspectives; patient satisfaction; Taiwan; systems research.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBSR.2011.037291

International Journal of Business and Systems Research, 2011 Vol.5 No.1, pp.73 - 84

Published online: 17 Apr 2015 *

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