One look at an advertisement or a web site of a hospital will reveal the naivete of the hospital promoters. A lot of emphasis is laid on the building, machines and equipment that a hospital has. They want to boast about their latest C.T. scan machine or their latest endoscope, etc.

Why I say that this is naive is because the patients and the target customers are not interested in which machine is installed at your hospital or what is the procedure that your hospital is an expert in. They just want to know how you can you make a difference in their quality of life. For example, let us take a gall bladder stone patient who wants to get laparoscopic surgery done for the stones. What do you think is more important for her- the make and configuration of the equipment or the total experience of what she will go through during the surgery? If I was that patient, here is what would be important to me in the exact order of preference:

1. Is the operation absolutely necessary? Can I avoid this surgery? Will there be any consequences of not getting the surgery done?
2. How big is the surgery? Is it too complicated?
3. Will it be painful? How much pain do I have to endure and for how many days?
4. How many days will I have to stay in the hospital? Can I afford to stay away from work for these many days?
5. Is the doctor skilled in this surgery? Does he operate routinely? Has anyone in my friend and family circle had an operation at this hospital or by this doctor?
6. How much will it cost? Where will the money come from?
7. Is the hospital environment friendly and nice? Will I have a comfortable experience here? Have they treated nicely so far?

My point is, a patient is more concerned about the overall experience he will get in hospital including safety and pain rather than the machines and the way the procedure is carried out. A recent survey has revealed that a patient is driven to a hospital mostly by the treatment he gets as a person from the doctors and staff of the hospital. He wants to be understood fully and to be informed fully.

If you are still wondering, here is my final logic- When you go to a restaurant for Chinese food; do you consider which oil they use or what company supplies them the chopsticks? I guess not. You are interested in how tasty the food will be for you. How the entire experience of that meal will make you happy and satisfied.

So tell the people about what they will get in terms of quality of life if and when they get treated at your place. Tell them what they will go through in terms of body pain and sensations during and after the procedure. Tell them how much it will cost and why that cost is worth incurring. Don’t harp about your machines, procedures, techniques etc. Nobody cares for that.

Vivek Shukla
Healthcare Marketing Consultant
Sai Mahima Hospital, Ram Nagar,
Dharamshala H.P. 176215
India
Phone +91-9816086868