CASE STUDY 4.1 Capturing an Emerging Market The growing racial and ethnic diversity of the US population seems to overwhelm some healthcare providers. Health systems that are used to providing one-size-fits-all care are now faced with patient populations that are increasingly heterogeneous and whose members often have perspectives on healthcare different from those of the providers. How- ever, if a provider can adapt to the needs of this growing market, a lot of opportunities will present themselves. For example, promoting the opening of a birthing center to a com- munity is challenging enough, but it becomes even more daunting when the residents speak 40 different languages. One hospital in an urban midwestern community not only took on this challenge but also turned it into one of the hospitals greatest marketing successes. Thirteen hospitals within a ten-mile radius of the primary service area provided obstetrics services to the community. An estimated 24,274 women of childbearing age lived in the primary service area. Another 134,055 women of childbearing age lived in the secondary service area. A service area analysis identified the following ethnic breakdown for the population: 72.2 percent white (including 18.9 per- cent Hispanic), 11.2 percent Asian or Pacific Islander, 9.1 percent other, 7.0 percent African American, and 0.5 percent American Indian. The percentage of Asians in the service area was quadruple the state and national averages, and the percentage of Hispanics was double the state and national figures. The racial and ethnic breakdown, however, failed to convey the unique features of the service area. Among the white population, recent immigrants from the Middle East and Eastern Europe supplemented the Hispanic population. The Asian immigrants came predominantly from Korea, Pakistan, India, and the Philippines. To more narrowly define the major ethnic breakdown of the child- bearing market, obstetrics discharge data by physician were reviewed. Physicians were asked to identify the major ethnic and cultural groups of their patients. The following major groups using obstetrics services were identified: Indian, Pakistani, and Middle Eastern (29 percent); Korean (23 percent); Hispanic (13 percent); and Assyrian (6 percent). Research into cultural considerations for these groups identified a significant subgroup of Indian, Pakistani, and Middle Eastern patients who were Muslim. On the basis of this information, four target ethnic markets were defined: Korean, Middle Eastern, Muslim (Middle East- ern, Pakistani, and Indian), and Hispanic (Mexican, Puerto Rican, and Cuban). To increase market share for obstetrics services at the hospital, marketing strategies were developed to raise awareness of the new family birthing center within these ethnic communities. To achieve this goal in a highly competitive market, the following objectives were adopted:

1.What changes taking place in American society make a one-size-fits-all healthcare system obsolete?

2.What particular challenge did the community hospital face?

3.What marketing techniques were used to address the needs of a diverse population?

4.In what ways did the hospital disseminate its message to the community (rather than relying on impersonal advertising)?

5.What indicators could the hospital have used to evaluate the impact of these marketing efforts?