SouthCoast Hospital operated 240 licensed beds, 30 of which were devoted to inpatient rehabilitation. The rehab facility was located in a separate building and primarily provided services to patients discharged from critical care units of the hospital who had been admitted for stroke, heart attack, or trauma. The facility was the only one of its kind operating in the market area, and thus it had no competition.

As Medicare and other insurers attempted to reduce the cost of care, restrictions were placed on the provision of rehabilitation services on an inpatient basis. As with many other health conditions, the emphasis (and the reimbursement) was shifted to outpatient care. This development created a challenge for SouthCoast, as it had historically focused on inpatient care and left outpatient rehabilitation services to other providers in the community. Now, the organization was forced to expand the limited outpatient services it offered and compete with other providers; the good thing was that it was known as the premier provider of rehab services in the region and had an excellent facility. However, it had not yet developed its outpatient program, which would require a marketing effort. The marketing staff embarked on a research initiative to determine the perception of SouthCoast’s rehab services both in the market area and within the organization. They anticipated that much of the hospital’s outpatient business (like its inpatient business) would come from internal referrals.

The goals of internal marketing research were to discover whether the physicians and staff (i.e., administrators, staff physicians, other clinicians, social workers, and discharge planners) knew of SouthCoast’s rehabilitation services (both inpatient and outpatient), to assess whether they were using the services or otherwise referring patients to the facility, and to determine what was needed to generate more patients from internal sources. Marketing personnel had never conducted internal research before and were somewhat stunned by their findings from surveys, interviews, and focus groups.

Clearly, an internal marketing initiative was needed, so marketing developed a plan for increasing awareness and utilization of the outpatient rehab services. The following activities were planned for this purpose:

• Grand opening of the outpatient services center, including tours of the space, for all staff and physicians 

• Informational sessions for those within the hospital who could be making referrals—including physician staff, patient advocates, social workers, and discharge planners—as well as admissions and financial services staff 

• Monthly employee newsletter describing the activities of the rehab facility, spotlighting key staff, and featuring successful rehab stories 

• Promotional materials (e.g., keychains, refrigerator magnets, sticky notes) bearing the outpatient rehab center’s contact information.

Questions 

1. What development led to a need for SouthCoast to shift its emphasis from inpatient rehabilitation to outpatient rehabilitation?

2. Why did SouthCoast now face a competitive situation that had not been an issue in the past?

3. Because the rehab facility was well established, marketing staff made certain assumptions about the internal awareness of the rehab services. What surprises awaited them when they conducted internal research?

4. What possible reasons could there be for the lack of awareness (and subsequent lack of referrals) of the rehab services?

5. What steps were taken as part of the internal marketing campaign?

6. What other activities might have contributed to the internal marketing effort?