TY - JOUR
T1 - Connecting with prospective medical tourists online
T2 - A cross-sectional analysis of private hospital websites promoting medical tourism in India, Malaysia and Thailand
AU - Moghavvemi, Sedigheh
AU - Ormond, M.E.
AU - Musa, Ghazali
AU - Isa Mohammed, Che Ruhana
AU - Thirumoorthi, Thinaranjeney
AU - Bin Mustapha, Mohd Zulkhairi
AU - Kanapathy, Kanagi
AU - Chiremel Chandy, Jacob John
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Websites of private hospitals promoting medical tourism are important marketing channels for showcasing and promoting destinations' medical facilities and their array of staff expertise, services, treatments and equipment to domestic and foreign patient-consumers alike. This study examines the websites of private hospitals promoting medical tourism in three competing Asian countries (India, Malaysia and Thailand) in order to look at how these hospitals present themselves online and seek to appeal to the perceived needs of (prospective) medical tourists. The content and format of 51 hospitals are analyzed across five dimensions: hospital information and facilities, admission and medical services, interactive online services, external activities, and technical items. Results show differences between Indian, Malaysian and Thai hospital websites, pointing to the need for hospital managers to improve their hospitals’ online presence and interactivity.
AB - Websites of private hospitals promoting medical tourism are important marketing channels for showcasing and promoting destinations' medical facilities and their array of staff expertise, services, treatments and equipment to domestic and foreign patient-consumers alike. This study examines the websites of private hospitals promoting medical tourism in three competing Asian countries (India, Malaysia and Thailand) in order to look at how these hospitals present themselves online and seek to appeal to the perceived needs of (prospective) medical tourists. The content and format of 51 hospitals are analyzed across five dimensions: hospital information and facilities, admission and medical services, interactive online services, external activities, and technical items. Results show differences between Indian, Malaysian and Thai hospital websites, pointing to the need for hospital managers to improve their hospitals’ online presence and interactivity.
KW - Content analysis
KW - Hospital websites
KW - Medical tourism
KW - Patient
KW - On-line search
KW - Medical provider
U2 - 10.1016/j.tourman.2016.10.010
DO - 10.1016/j.tourman.2016.10.010
M3 - Article
SN - 0261-5177
VL - 58
SP - 154
EP - 163
JO - Tourism Management
JF - Tourism Management
ER -