I recently attended the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development conference in San Diego. I purposely attended a senior level “think tank” session about healthcare trends and the future of hospitals.
I was struck by the comments from presenters about creating medical homes for patients. Really? Patients demanded access to their information and patient portals were mandated. Now, we have ZocDoc, health apps that come with all new phones, on line forums and social media. Hospitals and health systems have lost the race in creating medical homes for patients.
Patients aren’t waiting for us; they are creating their own! We were surprised years ago when CVS and Walgreens got into healthcare – our business. Well, does anyone schedule an appointment with their PCP for a flu shot anymore? They changed the landscape. But it appears that those of us in healthcare still aren’t reading the tea leaves.
As marketers, we need to recognize the trends and bring the voice of the patient to internal discussions. We all need to get real about where healthcare is going and the hospital is not where patients are looking for their medical homes.