Health Service Marketing Management in Africa

Health Service Marketing Management in Africa (978-0-429-40085-8, K402492)
Shelving Guide: Business & Management / Marketing Management
The application of marketing to healthcare is a fascinating field that will likely have more impact on society than any other field of marketing. It's been theorized that an intrinsically unstable environment characterizes this very relevant emerging field, hence raising new questions. Changing regulations, discoveries, and new health treatments continuously appear and give rise to such questions. Advancements in technology not only improve healthcare delivery systems but also provide avenues for customers to seek information regarding their health conditions and influence their participatory behaviors or changing roles in the service delivery. Increasingly, there is a shift from a doctor-led approach to a more patient-centered approach.
In Africa, the importance of marketing-driven practices in improving the delivery of healthcare services cannot be overemphasized. The issue of healthcare delivery and management is significant for policymakers, private sector players, and consumers of health-related services in developing economy contexts. Scholars have strongly argued in favor of marketing and value creation in healthcare service delivery in Africa. Each country in Africa has its own issues. For example, long waiting times, unavailable medications, and unfriendly staff are just a sampling of issues affecting the acceptability of healthcare services. These examples highlight the need to utilize marketing and value creation tools in the delivery of healthcare services. Furthermore, there is a need for the integration of service marketing and management principles to enhance the delivery of quality healthcare across Africa and other developing economies which is the critical focus of this book.
This book responds to calls for quality healthcare service management practices or processes from developing economy perspectives. Focusing primarily on African and other developing economy contexts, this book covers seven thematic areas: strategy in healthcare; marketing imperatives in healthcare management; product and pricing management in healthcare; distribution and marketing communications in healthcare; managing people in healthcare; physical evidence and service quality management in healthcare; and process management in healthcare.

Robert Hinson, Kofi Osei-Frimpong, Ogechi Adeola, Lydia Aziato

About the Editors and Contributors. Acknowledgements. Chapter 1. Introduction to Healthcare Service Marketing Management: Building Customer-Driven Health Organisations. Chapter 2. The Societal and Healthcare Context. Chapter 3. Strategic Planning and Healthcare Services. Chapter 4. Marketing in Healthcare Management. Chapter 5. Segmentation, Targeting, and Positioning in Healthcare. Chapter 6. Consumers and Consumer Behaviour. Chapter 7. Managing the Healthcare Product. Chapter 8. Utilisation and Pricing of Healthcare Services. Chapter 9. Distribution in Healthcare Markets. Chapter 10. Integrated Marketing Communications in the Healthcare Sector: Insights from Sub-Saharan Africa. Chapter 11. Branding the Healthcare Experience. Chapter 12. Branding for Small and Medium Sized Healthcare Institutions. Chapter 13. Managing Healthcare Employees. Chapter 14. Physical Evidence and Healthcare Service Quality Management. Chapter 15. Developing Customer Loyalty in Healthcare. Chapter 16. Financing Healthcare and Health Insurance. Chapter 17. Managing Healthcare Logistics. Chapter 18. Managing Policies and Procedures in Healthcare Management. Chapter 19. Technology and Health Services Marketing in Africa. Chapter 20. Application of Technology in Healthcare Delivery in Africa. Chapter 21. Technology and Social Media in Healthcare Delivery. Index.