Patient perceptions of diagnostic certainty at discharge and patient satisfaction in the emergency department

Patient satisfaction has evolved into a standard measure for qual-ity and value in health care. Given the importance of patient sat-isfaction to overall hospital quality measures, a growing literaturehas investigated a number of variables that affect satisfaction inthe emergency department (ED). For instance, studies have demon -strated that certain objective visit-related metrics, such as reducedwait time to see a provider, shorter length of stay, and a higher num-ber of administered treatments, underlie higher patient satisfactionin the ED.