Clinician satisfaction in laboratory service: A quality improvement approach at Upper West Regional Hospital, Ghana, 2025

Introduction: About 70% of clinical decisions rely on laboratory results, and quality frameworks such as ISO 15189, SLIPTA, and Quality Management System (QMS) require routine monitoring of clinician satisfaction. Laboratories in many low- and middle-income settings face challenges, including delayed turnaround times, reagent stock-outs, equipment downtime, and weak clinician-laboratory communication that can reduce satisfaction and compromise patient care. At Upper West Regional Hospital, no clinician feedback has been collected since 2023, creating a gap addressed by this study. Methods: A cross-sectional census survey of eligible clinicians at Upper West Regional Hospital (UWRH) (n = 36; response rate 80%), was conducted between August and October 2025. Data were collected using a structured online questionnaire covering four domains: accessibility & availability, timeliness & turnaround time (TAT), quality & reliability, and communication & professionalism, plus an overall satisfaction item. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively, with domain scores categorized and compared to a general scoring scale (High ≥70%, Moderate 50–69%, Low <50%) and the laboratory’s internal satisfaction benchmark (≥80%). Open-ended responses contextualized outcomes. Results: Mean domain scores were: accessibility & availability (73.7%), quality & reliability (72.3%), communication & professionalism (72.2%), and timeliness/TAT (58.4%). Overall mean satisfaction was 69.2%. The proportion of clinicians achieving the ≥80% satisfaction benchmark was 52.8% for accessibility & availability, 41.7% for quality & reliability, 44.4% for communication & professionalism, and 8.3% for timeliness/TAT. Overall benchmark attainment across all domains was 16.7%, while single-item overall satisfaction ≥80% was 55.6%. Conclusion: Although general domain scores indicate acceptable clinician satisfaction, failure to meet the laboratory’s ≥80% clinician satisfaction benchmark particularly in timeliness and TAT undermined clinician confidence and posed patient-safety risks. Short-term action plan interventions; including publishing agreed TATs, issuing time chits, enforcing critical-result notification logs, and educating clinicians on STAT requests were implemented to address immediate gaps.