The Decline of Private Practices and How it Will Impact Healthcare Marketers
by admin in Uncategorised
The landscape of the healthcare industry continues to shift, and one of the most pronounced changes is the decline of private practices. Through a combination of market forces and changing lifestyle preferences, more and more doctors are seeking employment with hospitals and major healthcare systems. In fact, between 2000 and 2010, the number of physicians employed by hospitals grew by 34%. (NEJM Career Center)
On the economic level, there remains continued uncertainty about the long-term effects of the Affordable Care Act. Currently certain specialties and high-cost service areas are seeing declining revenue as reimbursement is redirected. Physicians whose private practices revolved around these specialties are finding themselves priced out of business and are selling their practices to healthcare systems. (DMN3)
On the other end of the scale, many new residents aren’t interested in becoming small business owners. Whether it’s because they simply wish to focus on medicine, maintain a greater work/life balance, or lack of business training – these residents are directly seeking employment with hospitals. This group also does not want to shoulder administrative and insurance costs on their own.
According to the experts, this trend is likely to continue unabated. “In another five years, the physicians who have struggled to keep the old Dr. Welby vision will have retired,” says Perry Hanson, a partner in Wipfli, a health care consultancy in Wisconsin and Minnesota. (Managed Care)
This will mean a shift for healthcare marketers as well. Marketers will need to rethink strategies and tactics geared toward reaching doctors in smaller private practices in order to navigate the complexities of marketing to large healthcare systems. For instance, marketing to a hospital administrator may require creating a completely different persona. (LinkedIn Pulse) With targeting and segmenting becoming increasingly important, it’s vital to have a data partner that can provide targeted access to changing markets and one that understands how to navigate those markets.