Value can be defined from an economic perspective as outcome divided by cost. Value in healthcare services is often defined as clinical excellence, and that means that receiving the best medical treatment at the lower cost would be the best value scenario. Right?
Wrong. There’s a lot more in value than its economic perspective. Some healthcare initiatives are failing to see this and are betting on the excellence dimension as the only dimension that really matters. I am not saying that excellence is not important, I am just saying that in a world of “excellence inflation” (everybody is excellent), there are many other dimensions of value that really make a difference when the patient chooses to stay at a hospital or pay for a service.
Here’s my list:
(1) Personalization: Patients want their healthcare their way. They want healthcare to be aligned with their preferences and personal needs.
(2) Transparency: Patients increasingly want to know more about their diseases, they want to have intelligent conversations on how a course of treatment will impact them. Building trust through transparency is becoming essential.
(3) Simplicity: The old “kiss” rule (keep it simple, stupid) applies more than ever. Patients are stressed, worried, they really value simple processes of admission and discharge, information request and many other minor things that at the end of the day can make their lives so much easier.
(4) Human interface: A lot of doctors are not good at bedside manner, the human relationship with patients. And excellence is no longer enough. Patients need a human interface to communicate with. A caring staff can make again a difference.
(5) Time: Anything that saves time is greatly appreciated. Waiting lists, queues at emergency department, weeks to know the diagnose… All these matter too when citizens are making their healthcare choices.
If you are building a healthcare start-up willing to provide healthcare services, try to compete in all the dimensions, and not just the “excellence” one.
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