Persons with AIDS receiving hospice services: Variables related to client satisfaction and generalized contentment
Abstract
The purpose of this research was to help define the needs of persons with AIDS (PWAs) who are receiving hostile services. PWAS receiving services from a hostile in South Florida were surveyed to learn about their needs, their satisfaction with services received and their generalized contentment (level of depression) in relation to their perceived levels of social support and physical, social, and role functioning. The effects of the control variables age, gender, ethnicity, health insurance status, level of education, length of service, and whether the respondent received assistance with the questionnaire were also examined. A purposive sample was used to include patients with an AIDS diagnosis who had received at least 30 days of service. Hospice staff determined those patients who were physically and mentally competent and sufficiently proficient in English to participate. A total of 217 questionnaires were given to team members to deliver, of which 86 were returned, 73 of which were deemed usable, generating a 34% response rate. Each of the five scales included in the instrument package evidenced good reliability with this population. The results suggest high patient satisfaction with services indicating the services provided by the hospice met or surpassed respondents' expectations. Social support was highly correlated with generalized contentment. While none of the individual variables was statistically significant, the overall regression equations explained 47% of the variance for generalized contentment and 60% of the variance for client satisfaction. Despite methodological challenges, this study suggests that PWAs receiving hospice services are a valuable source of information regarding needs assessment and service delivery. Ideas for future research are presented. Implications for hospice service delivery as well as social work practice, research, and policy regarding PWAs are discussed.
Subject Area
Social work|Mental health
Recommended Citation
Kovacs, Pamela Johnson, "Persons with AIDS receiving hospice services: Variables related to client satisfaction and generalized contentment" (1996). ProQuest ETD Collection for FIU. AAI9625356.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/dissertations/AAI9625356