Elisa Solinas

Technology innovation in healthcare and changing patient’s behaviors: new challenges for marketing

The authors aim to determine the role of an innovative healthcare marketing approach, emerging within the context of recent health technological developments and in the light of a new patient profile. In the first section of the paper, academic literature allows reaching a full understanding of recent innovations in the healthcare industry and of the new expectations arising in today’s patients. On one side, health information technology (HIT) mainly focuses on enhancing life expectancy and on improving diagnostic and treatment options, both in an efficient and cost effective way. On the other, today’s patients are willing to accept HIT applications and switch to new and unconventional service delivery solutions in order to get a better care experience and a deeper involvement in the care process. In the second section, results of an empirical research based on primary data provide evidence of patients’ emerging value drivers. Our aim is to present a critical discussion on how a marketing-based approach could lead to better results, from both the patient’s and healthcare provider’s point of view. As a consequence, a major reengineering of healthcare services is required and must be driven by a new healthcare marketing approach.

Smart Technology for a Smarter Patient: Sketching the Patient 2.0 Profile

Patients’ behaviors are changing over time as effect of the Health 2.0 phenomenon that entails the integration of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in healthcare. A new patient profile with growing expectations is emerging in today’s healthcare world. In this scenario patient satisfaction has to be pursued through disruptive marketing strategies: healthcare providers are required to establish closer relationships with patients by leveraging both physical, experiential and technological service elements. Both qualitative and quantitative analysis were performed on a random sample of 2808 people divided into three groups: 737 outpatients and 861 inpatients of Niguarda Ca’ Granda Hospital (Milan, Italy) and 1210 citizens reached through an online survey while browsing the hospital webpage between January and April 2014. Descriptive statistics and bivariate analysis were carried out. Beta coefficients were calculated to investigate the emerging patient satisfaction drivers. New healthcare guidelines were depicted in order to match patient 2.0 requirements.