C Rajendran

The purpose of this paper is to identify dimensions of service quality (SQ) and their corresponding measurement variables in the tourism industry by focusing on India, a South Asian destination. The dimensions and the measurement variables have been identified through a detailed review of literature and exploratory research. Service quality in tourism comprises 10 dimensions, namely core-tourism experience, information, hospitality, fairness of price, hygiene, amenities, value for money, logistics, food and security. This study aims to enrich the body of knowledge pertaining to similar work undertaken by researchers in other parts of the world. The growing importance of Asian destinations in the global tourism market in general and emergence of India as a prominent tourist destination in South Asia in particular marks the importance of this study. The proposed framework is expected to equip the tour operators in the western world to better understand the tourism industry in South-Asian destinations. It would also be useful to service-providers for managing other equally important tourist destinations in South Asia and Asia-Pacific regions, which are endowed with similar socio-cultural backgrounds.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine the dimensions of service quality in Indian hospitals, from the perspectives of patients and their family members/friends (referred to as “attendants”). Design/methodology/approach – Based on the existing models and the literature on healthcare services, a framework is proposed to conceptualize and measure hospital service quality. Findings – Two instruments for measuring the dimensions of hospital service quality, one each from the perspective of patients and attendants, are proposed. Practical implications – This framework enables hospital managers to understand how patients and their attendants evaluate the quality of healthcare provided in respect of every dimension. A comparison of perceptions between patients and attendants would aid them to allocate resources to various aspects of healthcare, with respect to these two customer groups. Hospital administrators can use the instruments proposed to obtain feedback on their performance on service quality parameters so that they can benchmark themselves with their competitors. Originality/value – This paper contributes to research on healthcare services by the development of a comprehensive framework for customer (both patient and attendant)-perceived healthcare quality. © 2009, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to develop and validate scales to measure and benchmark service quality (SQ) in tourism industry. Design/methodology/approach - The second-order confirmatory factor analysis is employed to validate the instrument. SQ dimensions have been modeled which have significant impact on customer satisfaction (CS) separately from those which do not have a significant impact. Findings - Hospitality, food, logistics, security, and value for money have significant impact on satisfaction, while amenities, core-tourism experience, hygiene, fairness of price, information centers, culture, distractions, personal information, and pubs do not have a significant impact. Research limitations/implications - The above pattern may be different in a different destination, and in a different context. However, a major implication of the current findings is that a destination need not have natural cutting edges to be developed as a tourist destination. A destination with good logistics and assurance for security, value for money, impressive hospitality and food, can satisfy a customer. Practical implications - The scale which has been developed by us will be useful for destination managers to measure the SQ perceptions of tourists and benchmark destinations. The distinction of SQ dimensions with and without the impact on CS could enable a manager to manage these two sets of factors separately. Originality/value - Unlike previous works, SQ has been modeled in tourism as a second-order factor, which appears to be a more appropriate approach. The authors have also modeled factors with and without significant impact on satisfaction separately, and the approach does not seem to have precedence in literature. The inclusion of the factor, "Fairness of Price" is also a new contribution to literature. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

The increasing purchasing power of Indian customers and the significant growth in the industry have led to stiff Indian competition in the Indian healthcare sector. It has become vital for the healthcare providers to deliver and sustain quality practices in order to get established in the global health scenario. The main objective of the paper is to determine the dimensions of service quality in Indian hospitals, from patients' perspective. Based on the existing models and the literature on healthcare services, the authors have proposed a framework to conceptualize and measure hospital service quality. This would enable hospital managers understand how patients evaluate the quality of care provided and aid them to allocate resources to various aspects of healthcare, considered to be important by the patients. A questionnaire has been developed for measuring the dimensions of hospital service quality and is being validated. The current work could be extended to determine the link between various aspects of hospital services and patient satisfaction. © 2008 IEEE.