Comparison of Quality of Care and Welfare Services for Middle-aged and Older Disabled Individuals in Iran and Lebanon Using ServQual Model

Abstract

Objectives: The present study was conducted with the aim of investigating and comparing the quality of care and welfare services for middle-aged and older disabled individuals in Iran and Lebanon.

Methods: This analytical and cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2023 to April 2024. The samples included 84 middle-aged and older disable clients receiving welfare services in Iran and Lebanon, who were selected by simple random sampling. In order to measure the quality of services and the level of satisfaction, a questionnaire ServQual scale was used to determine the performance gap. The study data were interpreted using SPSS version 28 and JAMOVI version 2.3.21.

Results: The years of receiving services (YS) for Iranians and Lebanese was 18.49 (SD = 6.36), 15.7 (SD = 4.81), 20.59 (SD = 6.61) respectively. The YS and weighted ServQual have statistically significant deference between disabled citizens of each country (P < 0 .001), wServQual has statistically significant deference between Lebanese men and women (P < 0 .001), additionally wServQual has statistically significant deference between Iranian and Lebanese women (P < 0 .001). In the comparison between two countries, there was no significant difference in the mean scores of wServQual between Iranian and Lebanese men (P > 0.05). But this index was significantly different between women of two nations (P < 0.05). In the inter-gender comparison, the mean scores of the wServQual were significantly different between Lebanese men and women, but has no significant difference in the population of Iranian men and women (P > 0.05). The gender in Lebanese population, and years of age and nationality among Iranian and Lebanese women have the most predictive variables on wServQual score.

Discussion and Conclusion: It is recommended that by concentrating on the dimensions of the ServQual index, the effectiveness of care services for these individuals can be enhanced.