Study ranks cities with happiest patients

A study of more than 46,000 online physician reviews finds patients in the San Francisco and Oakland, CA, area are happiest with their health care, while patients in Bakersfield, CA, are the least satisfied with their health care, according to Vanguard Communications.

Vanguard collected ratings of individual doctors, group medical practices, clinics, and hospitals using Google+ and Yelp in the 100 largest U.S. cities. The cities were ranked according to their average patient rating on the five-star scale used by both websites.

Researchers also looked at factors like each city’s average income, median age, climate, education, political leanings, and percentage of insured residents. But the research found no connection between those factors and patient satisfaction.

According to the results, “Wealth-or lack thereof-does not appear to affect patient satisfaction. Three of the top-10 happiest cities have mean household incomes below the national mean of $51,017: Indianapolis ($42,144), St. Louis ($34,384) and Cleveland ($26,556). Climate seems to have little effect as well.” 

Next: Cities with the highest patient satisfaction

Cities with the highest patient satisfaction based on average rating on five-star scale:

1. San Francisco/Oakland, CA: 4.15

2. Honolulu, HI: 4.14

3. Indianapolis, IN: 4.05

4. Seattle, WA: 4.05

5. St. Louis, MO: 4.02

6. Cleveland, OH: 4.02

7. San Jose, CA: 4

8. Austin, TX: 3.98

9. New Orleans, LA: 3.97

10. Birmingham, AL: 3.93

Next: Cities with the lowest patient satisfaction

Cities with the lowest patient satisfaction based on average rating on a five-star scale: 

1. Bakersfield, CA: 3.34

2. Modesto, CA: 3.39

3. North Hempstead, NY: 3.42

4. Sacramento, CA: 3.44

5. Buffalo, NY: 3.44

6. Riverside, CA: 3.45

7. Orlando, FL: 3.45

8. San Bernadino, CA: 3.48

9. Washington, DC: 3.49

10. Huntington, NY: 3.5