The purpose of this paper is to develop a comprehensive Emergency Care Service Quality Index (ECSQI) using a digraph–matrix approach.
About eight emergency healthcare service quality factors have been identified in the literature and field investigations. The service quality factor relationships were analysed using graph theory and matrices. The equivalent matrix from the digraph establishes an emergency healthcare service quality function, which helps in evaluating the ECSQI.
The findings indicate that the quality of the treatment procedure and patient safety have the most significant impact on the ECSQI, whereas elements like hospital ambience have a comparatively minor effect. The framework emphasizes key areas for enhancement and offers a measurable system to monitor service quality in emergency care.
The adapted methodology can be practically applied to evaluate and compare the service quality of different hospital emergency departments. The insights gained from such assessments can assist emergency department managers in devising effective strategies to enhance service quality and overall patient satisfaction.
The ECSQI offers hospital administrators and policymakers a decision-support instrument to identify deficiencies, prioritize solutions and enhance patient safety. The model can be included in digital dashboards for real-time surveillance and accrediting procedures.
This work has the novelty of identifying the factors of emergency healthcare service quality of Indian hospitals and employing the structural methodology in modelling the factors for assessing the service quality.
