A Scoping Review of Measures Utilized to Assess Patient Satisfaction with Acupuncture Treatments Within Randomized Controlled Trials.

Objective: Patient satisfaction is an increasing priority for health care facilities in ensuring reimbursement for services, high-quality access to care, and transparent communication. Cumulatively, these metrics guide patient-centered care and facilitate optimal service delivery. The purpose of this scoping review was to evaluate measures of patient satisfaction with acupuncture treatments.

Materials and methods: This scoping review was guided by the Arksey and O'Malley methodological framework. Analysis was performed based on the multidimensional hierarchical model of perceived service-quality conceptual framework. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis statement was used to organize included publications and to display search processes in a flow diagram. An academic reference librarian conducted a literature search, using electronic databases that included PubMed,® Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, EMBASE,® and Web of Science.

Results: A total of 384 publications were initially identified and screened; 26 met the eligibility criteria and were included in the synthesis. Discrepancies in the use of patient-satisfaction measures among studies were found in only 1 study demonstrating holistic assessment.

Conclusions: There is a need for consistent measurement of patient satisfaction with acupuncture treatments. Future studies may evaluate development of a satisfaction tool to measure patient satisfaction with acupuncture treatments comprehensively.