Abstract
BackgroundMany people use the internet to access health care information to support health care decisions, and hospital websites can be the first point of contact to provide health care information services for consumers. However, little is known about the current information services provided by the websites of large Chinese hospitals.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the information services of the websites of large hospitals in China and the United States. We hope that our findings will benefit hospital managers worldwide in providing service information on the web.MethodsThis study adopted a cross-sectional analytical approach to evaluate the websites of large hospitals in China and the United States in 2020. A total of 300 large hospitals were randomly selected, of which half were in China and half were in the United States. Based on the 7Ps marketing mix, we identified 39 items that represent typical hospital website information services, covering the following seven dimensions: product, price, place, propagation, people, process, and physical evidence.ResultsMost of the items (34/39, 87%) related to information services offered by hospital websites were less covered in China than in the United States; however, 5 items (appointments by a third-party platform, mobile payment, hospital value, hospital environment display, and physicians’ profiles) had higher coverage in China. The average scores for hospital websites in China and the United States were 13.25 (SD 2.99) points and 23.16 (SD 2.76) points, respectively. Generally, high scores were given to the south areas of China and north areas of the United States.ConclusionsHospital websites in China lagged behind those in the United States with regard to information services offered. We recommend that hospital managers in China place more emphasis on the people, product, and propagation dimensions of the 7Ps marketing mix in the construction of information services on hospital websites. Through the comparison of the websites of large hospitals in China and the United States, our study findings can provide suggestions for forming standard hospital website construction guidelines worldwide.
Highlights
The internet has become ubiquitous in people’s lives
We recommend that hospital managers in China place more emphasis on the people, product, and propagation dimensions of the 7Ps marketing mix in the construction of information services on hospital websites
This study aims to compare the information services of large hospital websites in China and the United States, based on the 7Ps marketing mix, and examine the problems that exist in Chinese hospital websites
Summary
The internet has become ubiquitous in people’s lives. As of October 2020, almost 5 billion people had direct access to the internet worldwide [1]. Most adults use the internet to access health care information to support health care decisions [3,4], and a hospital’s home page can serve as the first point of contact to provide health care information services for consumers. Customers’ decision-making processes are often influenced by their perceptions and evaluations of a hospital’s website [6]. It is important for hospital websites to meet their expectations by providing useful and accessible information [7]. Many people use the internet to access health care information to support health care decisions, and hospital websites can be the first point of contact to provide health care information services for consumers. Little is known about the current information services provided by the websites of large Chinese hospitals
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