Health Management Services and Patients’ Satisfaction – Institutional and Patients Prospective: A Qualitative Study in the Eastern Nepal

Health Management Services and Patients’ Satisfaction – Institutional and Patients Prospective: A Qualitative Study in the Eastern Nepal | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Health Management Services and Patients’ Satisfaction – Institutional and Patients Prospective: A Qualitative Study in the Eastern Nepal Surya Raj Niraula, Tika Prasad Niraula, Abu Ansar Md Rizwan, Ram C Kafle This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7859531/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Jan, 2026 Read the published version in BMC Health Services Research → Version 1 posted 12 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Despite ongoing health reforms, Nepal continues to struggle with significant disparities in healthcare access and quality. This qualitative study explores the experiences and challenges faced by healthcare providers and patients’ satisfaction in Eastern Nepal. Eight Focus Group Discussions were conducted across six public and private healthcare hospitals among health professionals and patients. The discussions were guided by semi-structured interview protocols, which were focused on various aspects of healthcare delivery, including practices, services, and patient-provider interactions. Thematic analysis was employed to identify key themes. The study revealed critical gaps in healthcare service delivery, particularly in public and private hospitals in Eastern Nepal. Key issues included the lack of specialist care, inadequate medical infrastructure, poor management practices, high hospital charges, regional disparities, and longer waiting times, all of which contributed to patient dissatisfaction and reduced care quality. Despite these challenges, nursing care was consistently a strong component of patient satisfaction. Addressing the healthcare disparities in Nepal requires a comprehensive approach that extends beyond policy reform to actual implementation. Enhancing specialist availability through telemedicine, upgrading infrastructure, standardizing patient communication protocols, and expanding health insurance coverage are crucial for enhancing service quality and accountability. Nepal healthcare service patient-satisfaction qualitative-research thematic-analysis Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 12 Jan, 2026 Read the published version in BMC Health Services Research → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 29 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 29 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 17 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 15 Nov, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Nov, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Nov, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 14 Nov, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 14 Nov, 2025 Editor invited by journal 12 Nov, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 03 Nov, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 31 Oct, 2025 First submitted to journal 31 Oct, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7859531","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":549802979,"identity":"bcb34754-87ba-4fea-a867-67cf8237dd96","order_by":0,"name":"Surya Raj 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