Patients' Satisfaction with Health Care Chaplaincy and Affecting Factors: An Exploratory Study in the German Part of Switzerland

Surveying patients' satisfaction with chaplaincy services contributes to improving the quality of health care chaplaincy. Therefore, 679 patients from 32 general hospitals and psychiatric clinics in the German part of Switzerland were surveyed in a cross-sectional design. Seven factors influencing patients' satisfaction with health care chaplaincy were identified. They pertain, on one hand, to the chaplain-patient relationship ("Respect and friendliness,'' "Empathy,'' "Negative relationship'') and, on the other hand, to the evaluation of chaplains' interventions ("Religious=spiritual interventions,'' "Religious=spiritual issues,'' "Clarification, coping and support,'' "Conflict management and forgiveness''). Whereas the patient-chaplain relationship was significantly associated with the patient's age and religiosity, the apprehension of pastoral intervention was significantly associated with the patient's religiosity and denomination, length of stay, admission to hospital, and the patient's health status. The results suggest that chaplains have to take account of the situational circumstances and personal characteristics of patients in order to optimize their service.