FINDINGS FROM UCI SURVEY

 

Over 80% of IMAHelps Patients in Quito, Ecuador said Their

Healthcare Concerns Were Addressed

By Jeff Crider, November 2023

 

Just over 80% of the patients who sought healthcare services from the IMAHelps team during our mission to Quito, Ecuador last August said their problems were solved and their expectations were met, according to survey research conducted by medical students from UC Irvine.

“In total, 935 patients filled out the post-survey,” said Juan Pablo Hoyos, a UCI medical student who supervised the research project. Among the survey findings:

— 81.7% of patients felt that the problem was resolved after their visit.

— 80.3% of patients noted that their expectations were met.

— 83.9% of patients felt more informed about their health after their visit.

While 59.6% of patients said that wait times to receive patient care were “acceptable,” Hoyos said 29% of patients requested shorter wait times. 

IMAHelps President and CEO Dr. Cristóbal Barrios, Jr. said some shorter wait times could potentially be achieved by increasing staffing levels and the numbers of interpreters working in the triage area, where patients are initially checked in. He said new patient check-in and triage arrangements would be tested during the IMAHelps mission to Santo Domingo next summer to see if patient wait times can be reduced.

“Obviously, we try to evaluate and treat as many patients as we can on each mission, but this survey has given us a means of identifying clear patient concerns about wait times, which gives us an opportunity to try to find solutions,” Dr. Barrios said.

“Our patients typically take entire days off work to seek care from our team. So if we can shorten that wait time, it could help them minimize the amount of time they have to take off work.”

Long lines of patients up to two block longs circled the hospital during the IMAHelps mission to Hospital General Docente de Calderon in Quito, Ecuador.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Crider.

The IMAHelps team treated 3,750 patients and provided nearly 70 surgeries during its mission to Quito last August. So the UCI survey involved about one fourth of the patients who sought care from the IMAHelps team.

Dr. Barrios said UCI medical students would conduct additional research during IMAHelps’ summer 2024 mission to Santo Domingo. Hoyos said he hopes to share his colleagues’ research at upcoming conferences and to publish their findings in medical journals, which could be helpful to other nonprofit organizations involved in global healthcare and medical mission work in developing countries.