Transformations  in
Business & Economics

Consumer Segmentation in Polish Healthcare Market: the Regional Approach
Iga Rudawska

ABSTRACT. The transformations taking place in Poland aim at adapting the system to new conditions of a market economy. Market-based reform of healthcare has become a popular feature of the policy agenda for the Polish state. In the new environment, healthcare organizations have to be more efficient and more competitive. The goal of this paper is: a) to present a methodology of conjoint analysis useful for identifying patient segments; b) to describe patient segments in health service sector in Poland on the example of West Pomeranian Region; c) to discuss the possible application of research findings in the field of marketing of healthcare services.

In the paper conjoint analysis was used to estimate the relative importance of the attributes, associated with healthcare providers. The research has shown that in the newly created competitive environment, in which healthcare providers now operate, understanding patient expectations and evaluating them is essential, not only to protect existing patient lists, but also to attract prospective patients who may be motivated to look for an alternative healthcare provider.

KEYWORDS: healthcare market, patient preferences, segmentation, conjoint analysis, Poland.

JEL classification: I11, M31, D12.