Analyzing Individuals’ Perceptions of The Concept of Patient- Friendly Hospitals Through a Word Association Test

The concept of a patient-friendly hospital is a significant concept representing patient-centered healthcare services. Today, one way to improve the quality of healthcare is to meet patient expectations. Therefore, determining how the concept of a patient-friendly hospital is shaped in patients' minds is crucial for developing patient-friendly practices and improving the quality of healthcare services. This study aims to analyze how patients perceive the concept of a "patient-friendly hospital" through a word association test (WAT) and to reveal patients' cognitive structures related to this concept. Among the 718 words obtained, the highest frequency words were reliable (81), privacy (41), smiling-face (40), caring (30), clean (25), hygiene (22), and communication (20), resulting in a total of 172 different words. Content analysis conducted as part of the word association analysis yielded eight themes: communication, trust, accessibility, quality, service, staff, treatment, and environment. Individuals define patient-friendly hospitals not only as places with good physical conditions but also as institutions that value, respect, and have an understanding approach to patients. It can be said that in order to improve the quality of health services, more importance should be given to areas such as communication, ethical values and accessibility.