what is market research in healthcare

How to Conduct Market Research in Healthcare | IntelliSurvey

Healthcare is a fast-growing and changing industry. Legislative changes, regulatory changes, technological developments, and consumer behavior impact how healthcare develops and evolves.

Market research is a crucial strategy component in any field, including healthcare. However, in the medical industry, the stakes are much higher. When it comes to healthcare, generating sales and earning a profit is a smaller piece of the pie. In many cases, healthcare can impact a person’s standard of living or save their lives.

Companies in the healthcare sector have to take great care to conduct their market research accurately and ethically. Accurate data is imperative when creating new ways to care for patients, regardless of the product. Learn more about what market research in the healthcare industry looks like and why it is important below.

What Is Healthcare Market Research?

Healthcare market research determines the viability of new medical products or services through primary and secondary sources. Primary sources consist of interviews, focus groups, and ethnographic studies that strive to understand how consumers use products. Interviews and focus groups will likely include both patients and medical professionals. For example, a company creating a new medical device might want to know what would make a primary care provider’s life easier or make a patient more comfortable during their visit.

Secondary resources refer to a wide variety of research that is generally available. It includes any data collected by another credible party, such as a university, as well as scientific journals, statistics publications, and market research articles.

Healthcare market research helps organizations gain a better understanding of patient needs, perceptions, and motivations. It also helps researchers understand the needs of healthcare workers and other professionals in the medical field. Healthcare market research aims to understand all the different areas of healthcare. To gain a thorough understanding of all the moving parts of the medical market, researchers analyze everything from participants, audiences, methodologies, tools, and challenges in the field.

Why Is Market Research Important to Healthcare?

In any industry, market research is critical for creating innovative products and standing out among the competition. For companies in the healthcare industry, market research goes beyond driving sales and trying to turn a profit; it strives to close gaps in service delivery methods and improve patient care across the board.

Standing Out Among the Competition

The healthcare sector has become increasingly competitive thanks to disruptive technologies and venture capital investors looking into high-risk and high-reward business models. However, several major enterprises continue to dominate the healthcare and medical industries at large.

Patients and healthcare professionals may see this as a positive change because it leads to competitive pricing and more choices when it comes to care and treatment methods; however, it also makes it challenging for startups in healthcare to find their footing. 

Market research helps offset significant risks for new startups because it gives them the information and tools they need to stand out and create an actionable plan. For healthcare startups, that plan includes the audience they need to engage, why they need to reach them, and how they will accomplish that.

Development Insights for Innovative Products and Services

Even the most successful healthcare companies cannot afford to rest on their laurels when it comes to product development and customer acquisition. Since healthcare providers and other customers have more suppliers to choose from, even well-established organizations have to stay on their toes to stay ahead of the market. If patients and healthcare professionals can’t find what they need with your company, they will look elsewhere and likely find a solution.

Healthcare market research helps companies in the medical industry stay innovative and identify new ways to help patients and practitioners alike. When healthcare companies remain innovative, everyone wins. New products and services engage new customers and ensure that patients are receiving the care they deserve while making sure that the business stays profitable.

Close Gaps in Service Delivery Methods

Healthcare solutions are often sophisticated and require a service delivery model instead of a basic transactional approach. For example, companies that provide medical testing equipment to labs might rely on firms to help them track patient care satisfaction. Healthcare market research helps these firms identify if there are any gaps in service delivery models and find new opportunities to improve satisfaction among all parties.

What are the Primary Audiences for Healthcare Market Research?

Healthcare market research focuses on care delivery in hospitals, clinics, and other medical facilities, as well as medical procedures, patient satisfaction, and medical equipment acquisition and use within healthcare facilities. The healthcare industry’s market research audiences include:

• Primary care practitioners (Medical Specialists - Physicians)
• Secondary care practitioners (Allied Health Professionals - Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, Physician Assistants, etc.)
• Healthcare administrators - (Hospital/Lab Personnel - Pharmacy Directors, Medical Directors, Administrators)
• Patients and other healthcare consumers

Healthcare Market Research Methods and Tools

Healthcare companies must determine the methods and tools they want to use to gather accurate data. Depending on what information an organization needs, it can employ different techniques to collect quantitative or qualitative data. Researchers should ensure that the methods and tools they use align with their client’s or organizations’ resources and goals. Below are a few healthcare market research methods and tools that researchers may employ.

Online Surveys

Online surveys leverage questionnaires and screeners for an organization’s target market. For example, healthcare surveys are simple 10 to 30-minute surveys that help researchers get responses quickly. Online satisfaction surveys can reach a specific segment while saving time and encouraging more responses.

In-depth Interviews (IDIs)

In-depth interviews, or IDIs, can be time-consuming but often give researchers more information than other techniques. IDIs are typically held in person or over the phone between one respondent and a trained moderator. Since healthcare is a sensitive topic, 1-on-1 interviews make it easier to get detailed feedback if the interviewee feels comfortable.

Focus Groups

Focus groups are extremely effective during healthcare market research for developing new products and services. Focus groups are a group-brainstorming format that stimulates ideas and feedback that researchers might not be able to receive from a survey or 1-on-1 interview. Group-brainstorming sessions are commonly conducted in person or through a web call.

Ethnographic Research

Ethnographic research refers to field studies that leverage observation, interviews, and more to study how people use products and services and interact with different technologies.

Challenges in Healthcare Market Research

Since the healthcare industry is strictly regulated, researchers face additional challenges when conducting market research. Companies in the healthcare industry must ensure that their practices are within any regulations and laws. Researchers must ensure that patient information remains private and protected when collecting data. Healthcare market research’s primary challenges include:

• Limited availability of research respondents
• Difficulty recruiting respondents (since healthcare is a sensitive topic)
• Ensuring strict adherence to healthcare data protection laws and compliance with ethical guidelines.

Examples of Market Research in Healthcare

Patient chart survey: how do dermatologists treat psoriatic arthritis, niche audience research: how do you reach engineers responsible for consumer safety protocols in the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry .

Going beyond generic online panels is necessary to find validated sources and ensure quality response data for this niche audience. Using a blended panel approach , we sourced panelists from multiple vetted vendors to optimize the number of responses, field speed, and budget requirements. To meet the parameters, we delivered 61.2% of respondents recruited and interviewed by phone from our CATI partner and 38.8% from an expert network that provided responses via an online survey. 

How IntelliSurvey Can Help

IntelliSurvey has a variety of market research , survey programming , and field management services to help companies in the healthcare industry create an effective market research plan with performance trackers and advanced analytics. With help from IntelliSurvey, your organization can better understand what factors are impairing or improving your brand’s overall customer experience, what new healthcare solutions you should bring to market, or other healthcare-related research activities.

IntelliSurvey’s in-house research team can help your organization review and help draft materials for your market research plan. Our research team features world-class programmers to help ensure that your surveys and other materials are user-friendly and compliant with all ethical guidelines and regulations. IntelliSurvey’s experienced project consultants will ensure that fieldwork runs as smoothly as possible, so you can focus on things like data analysis and other projects.

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Healthcare Market Research: 10+ Trends & Real-Life Examples in '24

We adhere to clear ethical standards and follow an objective methodology . The brands with links to their websites fund our research.

Figure 1. Popularity of the keyword “healthcare market research” on Google search engine between 2017-2023

Research shows that there are four major areas that patients care most about but are still dissatisfied with 1 :

• obtaining coverage
• understanding benefits
• finding care
• managing care costs.

Market research is crucial for healthcare companies to address consumer dissatisfaction in these areas. By understanding consumer experiences and expectations through market research, businesses can improve these journeys, enhancing overall satisfaction and trust in healthcare services. This approach can lead to tailored solutions that effectively meet consumer needs and streamline their healthcare experiences.

This article explains the benefits of conducting healthcare market research, core market research solutions, and some real-life examples.

If you are looking for a market research software , check out our vendor guide and a list of top providers.

Why should healthcare providers conduct market research?

1- improve healthcare operations and services.

Market research gathers essential feedback from physicians, frontline clinicians, and patients, guiding healthcare providers in making changes that are seen as beneficial enhancements rather than impersonal or disruptive. This patient and employee input is vital for tailoring healthcare services to actual needs and expectations, leading to better patient outcomes and more efficient healthcare delivery.

2- Understand patient satisfaction & sentiment

Market research is crucial in healthcare to understand patient satisfaction and sentiment. The American Customer Satisfaction Index in 2023 rated hospitals 74 out of 100, highlighting the need for improvement. 2 Market research provides critical insights into patient experiences, identifying areas needing enhancement and guiding healthcare providers in implementing changes that truly resonate with patients. This research is key to elevating patient satisfaction levels and ensuring that healthcare services align more closely with patient expectations and needs.

To learn more about the applications of sentiment analysis in healthcare , check out our article.

3- Develop new products

With more than 75% of health consumers expecting more accessible, personalized care, market research is invaluable in guiding the development of new healthcare products and services. 3 This research helps in understanding patient preferences and emerging health trends, ensuring that new offerings are well-tailored to meet the specific needs of patients.

For more on personalized care , feel free to check out our comprehensive article.

4- Evaluate access to healthcare

Given that research shows one-third of adults have chronic conditions requiring regular healthcare, it’s crucial for providers to understand and improve access to medical services. 4 Medical market research practices can highlight barriers to access, such as geographic, financial, or informational challenges, and guide providers in making their services more accessible and inclusive for all patient groups.

Emerging trends in healthcare services

1- generative ai & digital transformation.

Source: Deloitte 5

Generative AI is significantly impacting the digital transformation in healthcare, fundamentally changing how data is processed and utilized. Its proficiency in handling unstructured medical data is leading to more efficient and accurate clinical operations. AI technology in healthcare enhances patient care and streamlines administrative tasks, marking a vital shift towards more advanced, data-driven healthcare services.

If interested, check out our article on generative AI in healthcare .

You can also check out the AI use cases in the healthcare industry .

If interested, you can also watch the video below:

2- Mergers & acquisitions (M&A)

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) is an emerging trend in the healthcare industry and it refers to the process of healthcare organizations joining forces or one entity acquiring another. This trend in healthcare is driven by objectives such as improving service quality, expanding patient access to care, and achieving cost efficiencies. Through M&A, healthcare providers can pool resources, share expertise, and enhance their capabilities to deliver more comprehensive and integrated care to their patients.

3- Wearable medical products

Wearables are revolutionizing patient monitoring and health management. These devices, ranging from fitness trackers to advanced medical wearables, enable continuous health monitoring, personalized care, and data-driven treatment approaches.

4- Remote healthcare services & medical devices

The concept of medical devices has broadened beyond traditional large-scale machinery to include everyday items like smartwatches, capable of gathering vital medical data. This trend complements the growing preference for virtual healthcare, evidenced by 50% having attended a virtual medical appointment in the last year. 6 These developments reflect an evolving healthcare landscape where technology enables continuous health monitoring and convenient access to medical services, reshaping how healthcare is delivered and experienced.

If interested, you can also watch the video about a mobile clinic:

5- Healthcare & well-being mobile apps

Survey across 19 countries shows that 85% of individuals state that their mental health is as important as their physical health. 7 Besides, one in four individuals experience mental illness during their lifetime. 8 Well-being apps are a cheap and accessible way of helping people to deal with these issues especially for those who cannot receive proper treatment.

Source:Statista 9

6- Cybersecurity developments

As healthcare increasingly adopts digital technologies, cybersecurity has become paramount. Research shows that more than 50% of customers express concerns about the security vulnerabilities of their smartphones and smart home devices, and 40% worry about data security on smartwatches and fitness trackers. 10 This trend underscores the need for robust cybersecurity measures to protect sensitive health data collected and transmitted by these devices, ensuring patient privacy and trust in digital healthcare solutions.

For a more comprehensive view on cybersecurity in healthcare , check out our article.

Essential methods for conducting healthcare market research

Online surveys.

Online surveys in healthcare market research are a versatile and efficient way to gather large amounts of data. They can be designed to capture both qualitative and quantitative information, allowing researchers to understand diverse aspects such as patient satisfaction, treatment effectiveness, and public health trends.

a) Qualitative research

Qualitative research in healthcare delves into the depth and complexity of patients’ experiences, beliefs, and motivations. This approach often provides rich, detailed data that help understand the ‘why’ behind patient behaviors and preferences.

b) Quantitative research

Quantitative research in healthcare focuses on numerical data to quantify behaviors, opinions, and other variables related to health and medicine. This method is crucial for statistical analysis, providing clear, objective data that can inform policy decisions and clinical practices.

If interested, here is our data-driven list of survey participant recruitment services and survey tools .

Focus groups

They involve small, diverse groups of people discussing specific health-related topics, guided by a skilled moderator. This setting is particularly effective in understanding the varied perspectives of patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals on new treatments, health policies, or service delivery.

In depth interviews

Conducted one-on-one, these interviews allow for a comprehensive exploration of sensitive or complex topics, such as patient experiences with chronic illness, decision-making processes in treatment, or perceptions of healthcare quality.

5 real-life examples of market research in healthcare industry

Ai4healthcro.

AI4HealthCro, a collaborative initiative in Croatia, stands as a testament to the transformative power of AI in healthcare. 11 This consortium is pioneering AI solutions with ambitious goals: dramatically reducing healthcare costs by an estimated €212.4 billion, saving a substantial number of lives, up to 403,000, and significantly increasing operational efficiency by freeing thousands of man hours annually.

Apple collaboration with Zimmet Biomet

Zimmer Biomet’s collaboration with Apple, resulting in the mymobility™ app and accompanying clinical study, exemplifies how market research in healthcare can drive product development. 12 This initiative leverages Apple Watch and iPhone technology to enhance patient care for knee and hip replacements, demonstrating a response to market demands for more integrated and personalized healthcare solutions. The mymobility app aims to improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs, illustrating the potential of market research in identifying patient needs and fostering innovative healthcare solutions.

Advanced – NHS Cyber Attack

The ransomware attack on Advanced, an NHS IT provider, highlights the critical need for robust cybersecurity measures and market research in healthcare. 13 Hackers took control of systems, posing potential data theft risks. The attack disrupted services like patient check-in and NHS 111, with recovery expected to take weeks. Healthcare companies need to ensure and understand evolving cyber threats and develop effective strategies to protect sensitive patient data and healthcare services. Market research can guide healthcare providers in implementing the latest cybersecurity solutions, ensuring resilience against such attacks.

Roni Jamesmeyer, senior healthcare manager at Five9, focuses on AI solutions like ChatGPT for ambulance services and highlights the importance of understanding customer needs through market research. 14 The findings from their FOI request to NHS Ambulance Trusts reveal a low usage of AI, despite its potential to manage high call volumes and improve patient routing. This underscores the need for comprehensive market research to educate and inform healthcare leaders about AI’s benefits, ensuring technology adoption aligns with actual service requirements and patient care needs.

Apple Health

Source: Apple 15

Apple’s collaboration with the medical community, as part of its health ecosystem, highlights the importance of market research in healthcare innovation. 16 Through ResearchKit and the Research app, Apple enables large-scale participant recruitment for studies, advancing scientific discovery. Tools like Health Records on iPhone strengthen the physician-patient relationship by providing meaningful health data. Apple’s partnerships in various health studies, such as those focusing on women’s health, heart health, and hearing, demonstrate how market research can drive significant advancements in public health and personalized care.

If interested, check out our data-driven list of market research tools .

You can reach out if you need help in market research:

External Links

• 1. “ Driving growth through consumer centricity in healthcare “. McKinsey. March 14, 2023. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 2. “ Gold-standard benchmarks for quality care “. American Customer Satisfaction Index. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 3. “ 2023 Global Health Care Outlook “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 4. “ 2023 Global Health Care Outlook “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 5. “ Trends in healthcare tech investments “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 6. “ 2022 Connectivity and Mobile Trends Survey “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 7. “ In sickness and in health: How health is perceived around the world ” McKinsey . July 21, 2022. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
• 8. “ 2023 Global Health Care Outlook “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 9. “ Leading health and meditation apps worldwide in May 2023, by downloads “. Statista. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 10. “ 2022 Connectivity and Mobile Trends Survey “. Deloitte. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 11. AI4HealthCro . Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 12. “ Zimmer Biomet and Apple Collaborate to Launch Major Clinical Study Detailing Patient Experience and Improving Joint Replacement Journey “ . Zimmer Biomet. October 15, 2018. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 13. “ NHS IT supplier held to ransom by hackers “ . BBC. August 11, 2022. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 14. “ Unlocking the power of AI for improved ambulance services “ . Healthcare. November 19, 2023. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 15. “ How Apple is empowering people with their health information “ . Apple. July 20, 2022. Retrieved December 13,2023.
• 16. “ How Apple is empowering people with their health information “ . Apple. July 20, 2022. Retrieved December 13,2023.

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How to conduct market research for healthcare

Find out how to conduct market research for healthcare so that you can provide better care and improved services for your patients.

Understanding healthcare market research

• Why is healthcare marketing research

Examples of healthcare market research

• How to make health market research

How to do healthcare and medical market research in 8 steps

• Tips for an effective healthcare market research

Market research shouldn’t only be done by what you’d consider typical commercial business. As it’s largely about people and what they want and need, other organizations—from governments to the healthcare industry—would definitely benefit from it.

Your local family doctor or nearest hospital will most likely not give you a survey with your prescription on your way out, but there are certainly ways in which the healthcare industry can gather valuable information about its ‘target audience’. 

In this guide we’ll highlight why market research is so important for the healthcare sector, how you can use it to improve your health systems and how to conduct your research in a way that’ll give you actionable insights.

Healthcare market research is done to learn how to improve health services for people, and how to get patients to pick your health care facility, service or product. In that sense, it’s less about selling, but more about providing the right information through the right channels, and having a really beneficial solution available to patients.

Why is healthcare marketing research so important? 

If you hear the words healthcare marketing research together, you might think that feels odd: healthcare isn’t typically something that needs to be marketed, it should be something people simply get when they need it. 

And that’s precisely why market research is so important for forward-thinking professionals in the healthcare industry. By finding out what people need and want from the healthcare industry, providers and brands will be able to give them services and products that are truly great. 

Below, we’ve listed some reasons why healthcare companies and patients benefit from market research.

Help people find the help they need

Even as patients, or especially as patients, people won’t simply ‘buy’ anything healthcare providers sell.

In other industries, it’s all about creating a demand or convincing people to choose your product or service. In healthcare, it should be about making sure that the people who need a certain service can easily find it. 

Think of it as inbound marketing, but with a shorter ‘sales funnel’. The healthcare industry is confusing enough as it is, and people want to see and know their options as quickly as possible. With healthcare marketing research, you can learn how to do that for them.

Patient satisfaction is crucial for improvements

For many patients, the barrier to go to see any healthcare professional, use a healthcare product or have some treatment can be very high. And this is totally understandable: they don’t know what to expect, and they’ve probably heard some horrific stories of others. 

Patient satisfaction should be taken very seriously by all healthcare companies. It’s not all about the treatment and whether that’s successful or not—even though that’s obviously the main objective. 

How easy was it for a patient to get help? How did they find the information they needed, and how clear was this? How were they treated?

By improving these ‘secondary’ factors, you won’t just improve the experience of patients, but also of the ones treating them. 

Improve business operations and services

What’s good for your patients and market, is also good for business. If you want to make informed decisions for your healthcare practice, don’t just perform internal investigations.

You can often give that knowledge a lot more context by talking to patients, suppliers and any other partners you work with. 

Improve healthcare—for everyone

A market analysis can also be used to simply start understanding your patients better. From specific research into women, minorities, teenagers, and senior citizens, for instance, will help you make your communications and the care you provide more inclusive, and therefore better. You can take away any possible barriers and start taking care of everyone equally well.

There are countless research topics worth diving into for medical professionals. Which healthcare practices need improvement according to patients, what’s possible in the world of medical devices, and how can a medical organization improve from a marketing perspective?

We’ll give you some examples of types of market research and key markets you can look into.

Market research aimed at patients

What’s the most obvious part of the market for the healthcare industry? The patients of course! You can learn so much more from them than just satisfaction stats.

• Test your branding and messaging on a specific market segmentation. How are senior citizens reacting to your brand, in comparison to young families, for instance?
• When developing a new product or service, find out what patients think about it with a new product development survey. Test your ideas with the people who will be using it. 
• Build strong consumer profiles to better cater to your patients’ needs. With qualitative interviews, focus groups and surveys, you can learn what every customer needs.
• Improve patient experience: what people experience asides from their treatment has a significant impact on how they perceive your organization and if they’d recommend it to others.
• ‘Buying’ journey research: how do people find you? What are important touchpoints and where could you improve the way you give people information?

How to make health market research data actionable?

If you want your research efforts to be worthwhile, you need to start every piece of research by defining what you want to do with it. Because this goes beyond nice-to-know or looks-great-in-a-powerpoint: you conduct market research to learn what you can do better, and how. 

We’ll dive into the steps to conduct healthcare market research below, but before you get started you need to have two things: 

• A clear objective
• Influential decision-makers involved

By having a historically-proven market research goal that’s connected to a practical reaction, it’ll be easier to select high-quality respondents and get actionable insights. 

And by having someone on board who is influential enough to take the newfound insights to the boardroom and make actual changes, you’ll know that your research and investments will be put to great use.

There’s no framework set in stone that dictates how you should exactly conduct healthcare market research, but there are some milestones that you shouldn’t miss, some boxes you should tick. 

We’ve put these in chronological order for you, although we do advise you to do your due diligence and see if you are still meeting previous standards when going through these steps. Here’s what you should do for successful market research in the healthcare sector.

Step 0: Have a goal

You know this one’s important because it’s step zero – it’s a no-brainer. 

We’ll repeat it because it’s such an important one. Make sure you don’t start your research based on a whim. Define your goal—what are you hoping to achieve with your market research? Include what you will be looking into, why, and think ahead on what might need changing based on the results you’ll find.  

Step 1: Bring decision-makers on board

Make sure everyone knows what the research is about, what the goal is, and have them prepare for making it all come true. There are a lot of stakeholders in any healthcare market research , so it’s important to have them all involved. Don’t just show up with the results at the end of the ride—make sure they tag along from day one.

Step 2: Select the audience

Now, this, of course, depends on the goal of your research. But we would like to remind you of the value you could bring on board by including extra related, target groups.

For instance, if you are investigating waiting times and patient satisfaction, it can help to not just survey patients—ask nurses who know what’s happening on the floor, so you can give more context to your data. 

Here are some examples of important audiences for health care market research.

• Patients and other people using health services. These could also be healthy people, like patients’ families, or people using health services that aren’t related to disease.
• Primary care practitioners, such as general practitioners, specialists, nurses, and pharmacists.
• Secondary care practitioners like consultants, caregivers, psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, and more
• Healthcare administrators, from board members to purchases and government officials.

Step 3: Take care of privacy

The way you handle data and take care of the privacy of your respondents is always important, but in this type of research, it’s all the more crucial. 

Make sure that any market research tools you use are compliant with the regulations that matter to you, and that everyone using them knows how to keep data and privacy in check. Also, communicate clearly to your respondents how you will be handling data.

Step 4: Choose the right research methods

If you conduct healthcare market research, you have several sources to choose from. Of course, primary sources will be more relevant than secondary ones (because you’ll end up with the data you originally needed, not second-hand data that was gathered for someone else’s use). But it doesn’t hurt to get your foundation right—especially in the early stages of your healthcare market research. 

If you talk directly to patients or providers, you’re doing primary market research. This can range from qualitative research like focus groups to more quantitative research like online surveys, to in-depth interviews. If you dive into existing reports and studies, you’re doing secondary market research. It’s always best to combine those, to give more context to the data you’re gathering. 

Step 5: Pick a platform

You’ll want to pick a platform and tool that has it all. That will make it easier to work with, and ensures that you have a grip on where all your data is being stored.

Using a platform like Attest gives you all that, and then some: we help you set up an airtight survey and make sure you can use the platform in the best way possible. As for privacy concerns, you can give the right people exclusive access so all data is safe—perfect for research, especially in healthcare settings. 

Launch your healthcare market research!

Reach 125m people in 58 countries to find out what products and services resonate with people

Step 6: Review the results

Time to look at the results! It’s key that you interpret these the right way—which all starts with asking the right questions. Get all stakeholders on board when reviewing the data, so you don’t miss any important angles. 

Step 7: Start implementing, stat!

This is the stage in which the magic happens. Translate your qualitative and quantitative market research services to action points. Make them SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely.

Step 8: Measure more than once

If you have your SMART goals in place and start implementing, it’s crucial that you also follow up. For instance, if you’re looking to improve patient satisfaction, make sure to measure again after a while to see if you’re on the right track.

Tips for an effective healthcare market research survey

Like with any other survey, a healthcare market survey shouldn’t be too difficult of a task for respondents, and there are some rules to keep in mind to make it a success. As healthcare is a specific category however, we’ve included some last top tips to make sure you make the most of it.

Use the right platform 

The platform you use for your market research is where it all comes together: privacy, survey results, patients, and researchers. It’s where you’ll read the results from, so it needs to be crystal clear. Take your time to choose one that’s right for you.

Keep your questions simple

Your respondents should not be the ones doing the hard work. Make sure your survey is easy to understand and easy to fill in. The right platform—something like Attest—will also help you with this.

Keep it short

If you’ve established a clear objective and topic for your research, and picked an audience with care, you can skip a lot of questions that are just fluff. If you find yourself asking for a lot of details about a demographic, ask yourself if you’ve defined your audience well enough.

Recruiting respondents

Are you struggling to find respondents for your survey? Make sure you are asking in the right way, and communicate clearly why you are doing this. People love being part of the solution, they just want to know upfront why they are sharing their experiences. 

Be clear about privacy

We can’t stress it enough: healthcare market research requires strict adherence to data protection standards. Check and then double check if the systems you’re looking to use live up to your standards. Also make sure that you can communicate clearly to respondents how their data is being used and stored.

The Experts’ Guide to Brand Tracking

How to look at the impact of things like audience reach, panel diversity, and survey design to help you decide whether your current brand tracker is up to scratch.

Customer Research Lead 

Nick joined Attest in 2021, with more than 10 years' experience in market research and consumer insights on both agency and brand sides. As part of the Customer Research Team team, Nick takes a hands-on role supporting customers uncover insights and opportunities for growth.

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A brief guide: Healthcare market research tactics

Healthtech startups offer unique challenges when it comes to scoping out their markets. The healthcare industry is notoriously complex, and most ventures will run into regulatory and reimbursement barriers when bringing their products to market. However, a little market research know-how will do wonders for easing your growing pains.

What is healthcare market research?

Unlike traditional market research , healthcare market research uses epidemiology and medical data to size your market. Healthcare market research focuses on the latest health trends and examines factors like patient comfort and education to identify market opportunities and penetration. It also accounts for healthcare’s unique customer landscape, where patient pools drive the overall market size, and where healthcare providers (HCPs) can influence product sales more than consumers. Healthcare market research provides an understanding of the number of potential patients that could be treated with your product, which products HCPs prefer to treat them with, and the accessibility of the market.

Primary vs. secondary research approach

What questions can secondary healthcare market research answer?

This guide will highlight several reputable free resources and tips to help you conduct secondary healthcare market research. The public resources identified in this guide can be used to:

• Estimate your patient pool
• Define potential reimbursement
• Map the competitive landscape
• Identify technological trends

Key secondary resources for healthcare market research

While there are many general market research resources available for the U.S . and Canada , these public resources can help you to understand the potential market for your therapy by providing in-depth, healthcare-specific data on epidemiology, patient demographics, healthcare spending, and more.

Calculating your market size/penetration

Using epidemiological data and patient demographics provided by resources like WHO and expenditure data from CIHI, HCUP or OECD, you will be able to directly size your market or estimate market penetration. However, if you cannot locate the information you are looking for, you can estimate your patient pool by crossing population data with prevalence or incidence data sourced from academic journals, or expand your research into other free databases .

Mapping the competitive landscape

If you want to understand where your therapeutic market is headed, it is important to research your competitors. A public competitor’s annual report can offer a wealth of information beyond their revenue. Many corporations break their financial statements into geography, brand or therapeutic levels and accompany their data with commentary and analyses. This information can illustrate useful market trends, such as which geographies are experiencing the fastest growth or which technological trends are expected to transform the market. Of course, even the most spartan annual reports can be used to puzzle out market growth through year-over-year calculations , or estimate market size simply by adding up the annual revenue of the other players.

Emerging startups should keep an eye on their competitors’ annual reports and press releases, especially since mergers and acquisitions can signal landscape upheavals or major technological trends. Due to the technological and regulatory barriers inherent to healthcare, fragmented markets are rare and any change in the landscape can have a far-reaching impact.

International resources

For ventures that are interested in marketing their products outside of the U.S. or Canada, market research can be more difficult. Resources like OECD and WHO provide important high-level health data, but other websites can help you understand international healthcare systems . If you are interested in the European market, many countries host extensive government healthcare databases. The National Health Service (NHS) and Destatis offer rich data sources on procedural volumes, epidemiology, and healthcare policies in England and the European Union, which you can use to build your market model.

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Healthcare Market Research Essentials guide

• Healthcare Market Research
• Life Sciences

Advanced technology has transformed research methodologies in healthcare market research into a dynamic, cross-disciplinary field that is essential to decision-making within health and life sciences. It has broadened the scope for exploring complex healthcare challenges, and fostered a more inclusive and diverse research ecosystem.

Historically, healthcare market research was primarily limited to academic institutions and large organizations, but now, small businesses, start-ups, and independent researchers are also conducting research. this has been accompanied by a growth in do-it-yourself (diy) research methods and more accessible respondent pools, resulting in innovative approaches to research that deliver a broader range of perspectives., healthcare market research essentials: tools and techniques in life sciences.

This series explores the foundational insights of healthcare research which serves as an introductory guide to the evolving world of health and life sciences research, designed to shape its future by integrating traditional methodologies with cutting-edge approaches both for seasoned researchers and those new to research.

Who is this toolkit for?

Table of Contents

1. The research process

The research process flow is crucial for understanding the healthcare research journey and typically follows core steps that are fundamental to the integrity and success of any study. These are outlined below.

While there are multiple approaches to conducting healthcare market research, this Toolkit provides a structured and comprehensive guide to navigating its complexities effectively, and focuses on the essential steps.

2. Translating business questions into research objectives

In health and life sciences market research, translating business questions into defined research objectives is complex. It involves detailed analysis of each aspect of the research, from the early stages of assessment through to the product launch. For example, converting a business query about patient engagement into a research objective could involve exploring patient communication preferences or their use of healthcare technology. This could lead on to researching the effectiveness of digital communication tools and the impact of patient education on treatment adherence.

Care needs to be taken to ensure that the research objectives directly address the core business question, as misalignment or vague objectives can lead to irrelevant or unusable research outcomes.

To avoid this, it is essential to maintain clear, consistent communication with stakeholders, and to validate each step of the translation process to ensure alignment with the overall business goals.

Mapping of business questions to research objectives across healthcare research phases (illustrative)

3. Selecting the right analytical techniques

It’s crucial to align advanced analytical methods with specific healthcare market research goals. This is essential when exploring areas such as understanding patient communication preferences or examining the use of healthcare technology.

The following table details analytical techniques, their applications, associated risks, and strategies for mitigation, within the specific context of health and life sciences. Ensuring that the method selected aligns precisely with research goals helps avoid the pitfalls of misalignment, and maintains the integrity of the results.

4. Analytical techniques in-depth

Factor analysis in healthcare research.

Factor Analysis is a sophisticated tool widely used in healthcare research to uncover hidden relationships within large sets of variables. Its effectiveness lies in revealing latent variables that influence patient behaviors, such as medication adherence, treatment compliance, or patient satisfaction.

Risk factors: This technique runs the risk of misidentifying latent variables and overfitting the data.

Mitigation strategies: It is essential to employ validation techniques to ensure the validity and reliability of the findings. This involves using separate, independent data sets to confirm that the factors uncovered are not just artifacts of a specific sample, but are generalizable and representative of the broader patient population.

Primary research example: Researchers can identify underlying factors that impact patient outcomes by applying factor analysis to survey data on different aspects of patient care, such as medication dosage and side effects, lifestyle choices and personal health experiences.

Cluster Analysis for patient segmentation

Cluster Analysis is particularly valuable in healthcare for segmenting patient populations into meaningful groups based on shared characteristics. This method provides a detailed understanding of patient needs and responses, enabling healthcare providers to tailor their approaches effectively.

Risk factors: This is a powerful technique, but care must be taken to ensure that the resulting clusters are statistically sound, clinically meaningful, and actionable.

Mitigation strategies: Researchers should aim for clusters that offer insights into patient care and treatment, and align with practical healthcare objectives, to provide clear direction for medical interventions.

Primary research example: Cluster Analysis could be used in a study of diabetic patients to create patient segments based on factors like genetic markers, lifestyle habits, or responses to different treatment regimes.

Perceptual Mapping in product development

Perceptual Mapping is a strategic tool in healthcare market research, particularly useful for product development and brand positioning. It graphically represents how consumers perceive different products or services, providing insights into areas like product attributes, quality, and overall satisfaction.

Risk factors: This technique requires careful consideration of potential biases in data collection and analysis.

Mitigation strategies: Researchers need to ensure that the data accurately reflects the diversity of patient experiences and preferences, avoiding overgeneralization and capturing the nuances of patient perceptions.

Primary research example: Researchers could use perceptual mapping in a study on prosthetic devices to illustrate how different brands are perceived in terms of functionality, comfort, and aesthetics. This visual representation helps companies understand their competitive position and identify areas for product improvement.

Regression Analysis in healthcare forecasting

Regression Analysis is a cornerstone of predictive analytics in healthcare research, and encompasses a range of forms including linear, logistic, and multiple regression. It is used to establish relationships between variables and predict outcomes. The choice of regression model depends on the nature of the dependent variable and the specific research question.

A key risk of regression analysis is overfitting, where the model is too closely fitted to the sample data and may not perform well on new data. Techniques such as cross-validation can help ensure the model’s applicability to broader patient populations.

Primary research example: Linear regression can be used to model the relationship between treatment methods and patient recovery rates. Logistic regression can be employed to predict the probability of disease occurrence based on patient demographics and health history.

Discriminant Analysis versus other classification methods

Discriminant Analysis is a valuable classification tool in healthcare research, often used in conjunction with, or as an alternative to, other methods like logistic regression or decision trees. Each method has its strengths and is chosen based on the specific requirements of the research.

Researchers need to carefully consider the assumptions underlying each method and the nature of the data to choose the most appropriate technique for their specific research question. Logistic regression is typically used for binary classification problems, such as diagnosing a disease as present or absent.

Primary research example: Discriminant analysis is particularly useful for classifying individuals into multiple categories, making it ideal for situations where patients need to be categorized into various risk groups or treatment categories based on a combination of clinical and demographic factors.

Logistic Regression in healthcare studies

Logistic Regression handles binary outcomes and provides probabilities, offering a nuanced understanding of risk factors.

Primary research example: In studying hospital readmission rates, researchers might analyse a range of variables, including patient age, prior health conditions, length of hospital stay, and the nature of the treatment received, to predict the likelihood of a patient being readmitted. Such a model could help healthcare providers identify patients at high risk of readmission and develop targeted interventions to improve patient outcomes and reduce readmission rates.

5. Conjoint Analysis and MaxDiff in preference studies

Conjoint and maximum difference (MaxDiff) analysis can cause confusion because of their overlapping function of identifying preferences. It is essential to address this overlap, as these techniques can profoundly influence the effectiveness and efficiency of research initiatives in health and life sciences. Here we outline the unique characteristics and applications for each, and provide examples of where to use each method.

Conjoint Analysis: Unravelling complex preferences

Conjoint Analysis is a robust method for evaluating the relative importance of various attributes of healthcare products or services. It simulates real-world decision-making by asking respondents to rank or rate different combinations of attributes presented in product profiles.

This method is particularly useful when detailed insights into attribute interactions and preferences are essential. it provides a nuanced perspective of how different attributes are valued in relation to each other.

Primary research example: When evaluating a new medical device, Conjoint Analysis can present a combination of attributes such as cost, ease of use, and durability for respondents to rank. This process helps researchers understand the trade-offs that healthcare professionals or patients are willing to make, and give deep insights into what drives these choices.

A practical application of Conjoint Analysis in healthcare involves evaluating preferences for a new digital health tool. Researchers can present features including user interface design, functionality, data security, and integration capabilities, to determine which are most valued by healthcare providers or patients.

MaxDiff Analysis: Simplifying the complexity of choice

MaxDiff Analysis is appropriate for determining the relative importance of a broad range of items or attributes, and where directly ranking them would be complex or overwhelming for respondents.

In a MaxDiff survey, participants are shown sets of items and asked to indicate the most and least important items in each set. This simplifies the task for respondents, particularly when dealing with a large number of attributes, and produces more reliable data.

Primary research example: In healthcare research, MaxDiff can be employed to understand patient priorities in a hospital setting. Patients are presented with a range of aspects of their hospital experience, such as service efficiency, and quality of medical care, facilities and communication with healthcare providers. By identifying the most and least important aspects in each set, researchers can gain clear insights into what matters most to patients. This information can be used to guide improvements in patient care and hospital management.

Choosing between Conjoint Analysis and MaxDiff

The choice between Conjoint Analysis and MaxDiff should be based on your research objectives and the decision-making process being studied.

Conjoint Analysis is more suitable when you need a detailed understanding of how individual attributes impact overall preference, especially when you’re interested in attribute interactions. It is ideal for scenarios where the number of attributes is relatively manageable and you want to understand complex preference structures.

When to use Conjoint Analysis

When evaluating a new pharmaceutical product, where understanding the nuanced preferences for efficacy, side effects, dosage frequency, and price is critical.

When to use MaxDiff

When the research deals with many attributes, and the main goal is to identify the most and least important, this method minimizes cognitive load. It is particularly effective in providing clear, actionable insights for prioritizing features or aspects in healthcare services or products.

Choose MaxDiff for studies like evaluating patient satisfaction across a wide range of service elements in a healthcare facility. This is especially suitable when there are many attributes, making a detailed conjoint study impractical.

6. Ethical considerations

A commitment to established ethical guidelines and close collaboration with ethics committees are essential to research design. This ensures that healthcare data is collected and used in a way that meets the highest ethical standards.

These ethical considerations are fundamental to responsible healthcare research. Careful implementation maintains the ethical integrity of studies and builds trust between researchers and participants. This ultimately contributes to advancing knowledge in the health and life sciences sector.

The key ethical considerations are:

7. Analysis and interpretation

Robust and reliable data analysis is a critical part of healthcare research. To ensure this, the following best practices should be followed:

8. Conclusion

Conducting effective healthcare market research is a complex and dynamic process that demands rigorous planning, meticulous execution, and steadfast commitment to ethical principles. The journey begins with the critical step of translating business inquiries into defined research objectives. This sets the stage for the subsequent tasks of data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Each phase is integral, contributing significantly to the overarching goal of guiding pivotal decisions in the health and life sciences industry.

The landscape of healthcare research is one of continual transformation, driven by ground-breaking technologies, ever-changing patient needs, and an increasing focus on data-centric decision-making. By fostering collaboration, nurturing dedication, and upholding a staunch adherence to ethical research practices, we can all contribute to shaping a healthier and more informed future for everyone.

Future insights on selecting the appropriate audience and sampling methods in healthcare research will also explore the crucial considerations for global research initiatives in health and life sciences.

Download the full report

More about market research techniques:, demystifying surveys: a guide to using b2b market research measurement scales.

This guide is a deep dive into the nuances of measurement scales – from the common Likert-type and Semantic Differential Scales to the unique Stapel’s Scale. It explores important considerations such as the balance, nature, and types of scales, and their implications for analysis when creating market research.

Primary Research in Health Economics and Outcomes Research

Further healthcare insights and case studies

• The Potential of Ethnography in Healthcare and Pharmaceutical Research
• AI in Healthcare: Navigating the road to adoption through research
• Health Economics Outcomes Research with Real-world Insights
• Watch the Competitive Intelligence in Health & Life Sciences: Learning from Leaders webinar, hosted by our sister company, Fuld & Company .

Phronesis Partners healthcare research services

Explore our services and access additional resources though Phronesis Partners’ Health and Life Sciences Research which provides expert guidance and comprehensive insights in this field

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• Life Sciences Healthcare Market Research Essentials guide
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How To Conduct Healthcare Market Research

June 24, 2024

SIS International

Have you ever wondered how health institutions decide which services to offer, or how pharmaceutical companies determine which drugs to develop? Behind these decisions lies the healthcare market research. 

It guides the health sector towards more informed choices, effective strategies, and ultimately, better patient care. But, what exactly is healthcare market research, and why is it so vital to the health industry?

Understanding Healthcare Market Research

Unlike consumer packaged goods or financial services, the purchase of most healthcare products and services are generally not optional.   But that does not mean that someone absolutely must buy what you sell!   Thus there are many questions that need to be answered in order to maintain a “healthy” (pun intended) business.

The healthcare market primarily consists of…

Why Is It Important?

Healthcare market research is the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data related to the healthcare industry. It includes a vast range of areas, from studying patient preferences and behaviors to analyzing market trends for medical devices, pharmaceuticals, and health services.

Therefore, it plays a pivotal role in ensuring the industry remains patient-centric and competitive. Some of the most important benefits for business are as follows: 

• Patient-Centric Decision-Making: By understanding patient preferences, needs, and challenges, businesses can develop products and services that are genuinely tailored to their target audience. So, healthcare market research aids in understanding these nuances, ensuring that the patient’s voice is at the forefront of decision-making.

• Navigating Regulatory Compliance: The healthcare industry is heavily regulated, and these regulations can vary by region and country. Comprehensive healthcare market research helps companies understand these regulatory landscapes, ensuring they remain compliant and avoid costly penalties.

• Understanding Market Dynamics: From emerging health trends to shifts in patient demographics, market research keeps businesses informed. This knowledge enables them to pivot their strategies in real-time, ensuring they remain competitive and relevant.

• Risk Mitigation: Before launching a new product, service, or treatment approach, it’s essential to gauge its potential reception in the market. For this reason, healthcare market research helps in forecasting these scenarios, allowing businesses to make informed decisions, and mitigating risks of significant losses.

• Enhancing Stakeholder Trust: Regular market research showcases a company’s commitment to staying informed and prioritizing patient needs. This transparency and dedication can enhance trust among stakeholders, from patients and healthcare providers to investors and partners.

Main Benefits of Healthcare Market Research

When diving into the realm of healthcare, it’s essential to underscore the myriad benefits healthcare market research brings to businesses, healthcare professionals, and patients. Here’s a breakdown of some of these benefits:

• Spotting Market Opportunities: Through market research, companies can identify gaps in the market – be it an unmet medical need, a demographic that’s underserved, or a new therapy that can be developed. Capitalizing on these gaps can lead to innovation and new revenue streams.

• Optimizing Product Launches: The success of a new drug or medical device isn’t just about its efficacy. Healthcare market research aids in determining the right pricing, positioning, and promotional strategy to ensure its success in the market.

• Improved Patient Outcomes: By understanding patient needs, experiences, and feedback, healthcare market research helps in refining treatment approaches and healthcare services. This invariably translates to better patient outcomes and improved overall healthcare delivery.

• Cost Efficiency: Inefficient practices can bleed resources in the healthcare industry. Thus, market research can identify these inefficiencies, whether in the supply chain, service delivery, or patient management, allowing organizations to address them proactively.

• Tailored Marketing Efforts: With insights from healthcare market research, marketing campaigns can be designed to speak directly to the concerns, needs, and desires of specific patient groups, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates.

• Monitoring Competitor Activities: This research also includes competitor analysis, giving businesses an edge by understanding their competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, and upcoming moves.

Emerging Trends in Healthcare Market Research

The healthcare industry, influenced by advancements in technology, shifts in patient behavior, and a rapidly changing regulatory environment, is in a perpetual state of evolution. Consequently, healthcare market research has been instrumental in keeping pace with these changes, and in the process, has identified several emerging trends:

• Patient Empowerment and Consumerism: Patients are behaving more like consumers, seeking information, comparing providers, and making informed decisions about their care. Healthcare market research is shedding light on this paradigm shift, helping providers tailor their services to meet these evolving expectations.

• Digital Health and Telemedicine: The ongoing digital transformation in healthcare is a focal point in healthcare market research. From wearable tech gathering real-time patient data to virtual consultations, understanding the implications and possibilities of digital health has become paramount.

• Personalized Medicine: The drive towards tailored medical treatments based on an individual’s genetics and lifestyle is gaining momentum. Healthcare market research is vital in understanding patient attitudes, gauging the potential market size, and determining best practices for this bespoke approach to medicine.

• Data Privacy and Security Concerns: With healthcare becoming more digitized, concerns about data privacy and cyber threats have come to the forefront. Market research is investigating patient trust levels and expectations concerning their personal health information.

• Incorporation of AI and Machine Learning: AI’s role in diagnosing diseases, predicting patient needs, and even drug discovery is growing. Healthcare market research is instrumental in gauging healthcare professionals’ receptivity, potential barriers, and the broader implications of AI in healthcare.

• Mental Health Focus: Mental health, once sidelined, is receiving the attention it deserves – and market research is diving deep into understanding the societal, cultural, and economic nuances surrounding mental health to shape policies and practices.

Key Opportunities for Businesses

The dynamic world of healthcare offers multiple opportunities for businesses. Healthcare market research highlights these opportunities while mitigating potential risks. Here are some of the prime opportunities uncovered by market research:

• Precision Medicine and Genomics: Tailoring medical treatments to individual patients based on their genetic makeup presents a goldmine of opportunities. Businesses venturing into genomic data analysis, genetic testing kits, and personalized therapy can find immense potential.

• Wearable and IoT Devices: Wearable devices are revolutionizing patient care and data collection. Healthcare market research highlights the market’s growth potential, areas of innovation, and the type of data consumers are comfortable sharing.

• Telemedicine Platforms: There’s a growing market for platforms that offer secure, user-friendly, and comprehensive telehealth solutions. Market research identifies demographic groups most open to telemedicine and the key features they seek.

• AI-Driven Innovations: Whether it’s for diagnostics, administrative tasks, or patient management, AI has immense potential in healthcare. Market research provides clarity on areas ripe for AI integration and the barriers to its adoption.

• Collaborative Platforms: As cross-sector collaborations increase, platforms that facilitate cooperation between tech companies, pharma, and healthcare providers are in demand. Healthcare market research aids in identifying the needs of these sectors and creating solutions that bridge the gap.

Challenges of Healthcare Market Research

While healthcare market research is an indispensable tool for businesses, it does come with its own set of challenges – and the healthcare industry demands a nuanced approach to market research. Let’s explore some of the challenges businesses may encounter:

• Regulatory and Compliance Issues: The healthcare industry is highly regulated worldwide. Healthcare market research must ensure that data collection, analysis, and dissemination comply with local, national, and international standards and laws. Navigating these regulations can often be complex.

• Patient Data Privacy: Protecting patient data is paramount. Researchers often deal with sensitive health information, making it crucial for businesses to ensure the utmost security and confidentiality.

• Diverse Patient Populations: With diversity in genetics, culture, and socioeconomic backgrounds, a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t work. Healthcare market research must account for this diversity, which can be a challenging endeavor.

• Subjectivity in Patient Feedback: Patients’ perceptions of care, treatment outcomes, and overall experience can be highly subjective. As a result, this research must employ rigorous methodologies to ensure that the insights derived are reliable and actionable.

• Complex Decision-Making Structures: Unlike many other sectors, healthcare decisions aren’t made by one person or entity. Decisions involve doctors, administrators, patients, and payers. Understanding this complex web is crucial for effective research.

• Stakeholder Engagement: Engaging busy healthcare professionals can be challenging. Ensuring their buy-in and getting their valuable insights requires tact and a clear value proposition.

Here are 3 steps that may help you with your need for market research

1. If you are planning to conduct research on this market, start by addressing the following basic questions.

What are your objectives? 

• Do you want to study the whole market or just a part of it? (e.g. global, national, or regional)
• Do you want to gather opinions from consumers (patients) and/or from providers of products or services to them?
• Are you concerned about reactions to a new product or service?
• Do you want to know what your competition is planning to do?

What is the overall landscape of your market(s)?

• What is its size?   Key segments?   Trends?
• Who are the major competitors?   Where are they located?
• How are distribution and the supply chain organized?

Who precisely are your target customers, and what are the characteristics of respondents you wish to hear from?

• Are end users both the decision-makers as well as the buyers?   Or do others (such as doctors, spouses, and parents) play a role in influencing the purchase?
• What kinds of purchases are influenced by others? (e.g. prescription or non-prescription drugs, nutritional supplements, vitamins)
• Do patients have any unique demographics of interest (children, senior citizens, gender, specific diseases or medications)?
• Is there a list of potential subjects available to study, or do you need to recruit a representative sample?

2. Next, you can move into addressing other key questions, such as

• What are substitutes for your product or service?
• What is the likelihood and frequency of repeat purchases?
• Where and how often are your messages seen or heard?   (e.g. in a doctor’s office, on desktops, smartphones, cable TV, or magazines)

3. Finally, you should decide whether to use qualitative, quantitative, or both types of research to ask questions and collect data.

• Personal interviews (either face to face or on the phone) and focus groups as well as diary studies or surveys often deal with very sensitive health issues. It may be easier to interview a doctor in person or on the phone, and patients in a focus group or via an online survey. Often, a combination of methods and respondent groups will provide an optimal set of findings to answer your questions.
• When formulating questions, you may wish to measure how people react to the relative importance of certain product features, or feelings about price points.   A technique known as conjoint analysis can help to predict the acceptance and probability of purchase based on which of several different options are presented.  
• Or you might want to know how your brand compares to those of your competitors and what factors most influence those perceptions. Here, use brand equity research , where each feature of a brand can be ranked or rated to identify what matters most in its overall preference.
• Another approach involves a person’s actual usage of a product, followed by their attitudes and feelings. In some attitude and usage studies, answers to a “pre” versus “post” set of questions can highlight any changes in perception.
• Have a solid plan, with well-defined objectives.
• Pick the right methods to ask the right questions of the right people.
• Select a qualified research firm to assist with your project and to help inform your decisions.

About SIS International

SIS International offers Quantitative, Qualitative, and Strategy Research. We provide data, tools, strategies, reports and insights for decision-making. We conduct interviews, surveys, focus groups and many other Market Research methods and approaches. Contact us for your next Market Research project.

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How to Do Healthcare Market Research for Your Medical Practice

By Kiwi Health

Published: Nov 9, 2023

As access to quality healthcare becomes scarcer by the day, private practices play a crucial role in filling the gap. With each passing day, countless individuals seek the specialized care and attention that private healthcare providers offer. But how can you ensure that those who need your services find their way to your practice? This is where the power of healthcare market research comes in.

Market research isn’t just a tool; it’s a roadmap of your journey to a successful practice. Whether you’re an aspiring private practitioner or working in private practice already, this guide will help you navigate the intricacies of healthcare market research. 

Included are how to find and cater to your unique patient population as you grow your practice.

What Is Market Research?

Healthcare market research and competitive analysis is a process where data is collected, analyzed, and interpreted for the purpose of gaining insights into market dynamics, consumer behaviors and needs, and industry trends. 

Private healthcare practitioners use market research to understand their patient population, adapt to changing healthcare landscapes, and optimize their services to meet patient needs. Healthcare practitioners can improve patient experiences by conducting thorough market research, identifying unmet patient needs, and tailoring their approach to patient acquisition.

Consider market research for therapists, for example. A therapist can use market research to identify trends in the types of therapy sought in their area and ensure they promote the applicable services they offer.

Healthcare market research for nurse practitioners might look like this: in the community where their clinic is located, a nurse practitioner may decide to conduct a health needs assessment and, based on that research, provide specialized services to cater to the most sought-after needs. 

The Importance of Healthcare Market Research 

From a business perspective, market research for medical practices is essential for understanding the needs and preferences of the local community or telehealth patients a practice serves. It can also help practices identify potential new markets and create targeted marketing campaigns .

Healthcare providers can use research to optimize their services based on patient preferences, which results in greater patient satisfaction and loyalty. Market research can also identify new market opportunities and help practices expand services, specialize in certain areas, or reach new geographic regions. 

As healthcare businesses seek to differentiate themselves from their competitors, market research provides insights into their strengths and weaknesses, letting them develop strategies for differentiation and maintain their competitive edge.

Research Helps with Regulatory Compliance

The healthcare industry is highly regulated, and market research helps practices keep up with changing regulations. It aims to mitigate risks when introducing new services, expanding, or investing in tech to help practice the most effective use of resources. By uncovering what patients are willing to pay for services and what competitors charge, market research helps practices determine optimal pricing for services.

Research Helps with Marketing

Research also helps with marketing efforts. It lets healthcare businesses effectively reach their target audience and build a strong brand identity . Understanding patient needs and preferences is key to improving the patient experience, which leads to higher satisfaction levels and more word-of-mouth referrals. 

Market research also helps practitioners build a website that complements their practice’s marketing efforts. By conducting market research, practices can gain valuable insights into the ideal content, features, design, and keywords needed to build a strong brand presence. As a result, a practice’s website becomes more visible to the right potential patients. 

Gathering customer feedback through the website (a form of market research) further lets practices continue to understand and refine their knowledge of their patients and the patient experience.

Healthcare Market Research Supports Sustainable Growth

Market research helps businesses make informed decisions around financing, budgeting, resource allocation, and long-term planning. 

Market research provides the necessary data to ensure the long-term success and growth of a healthcare business.

How to Do Market Research for a Medical Practice

Now that you have an understanding of the importance of market research for your medical practice, it’s time to identify the steps involved.

1. Define Your Market

Begin by clearly defining the scope of your market. In the context of private healthcare practice, this means determining the geographic area and patient demographic (age, gender, etc.) you want to serve.

When you define your market, you can set boundaries for your research and focus your efforts accordingly. Here’s a good place to start if you’re just beginning to define your market . 

2. Identify Your Ideal Patient Profile

Once you’ve defined your market, identify your ideal patient profile within that market. A patient profile or persona helps you understand who you are serving and marketing to. Here’s an example for developing a patient persona,  

Consider demographics when creating your profile,  such as age, gender, daily activities, income level, hobbies, and health conditions, that align with your services. By identifying the specific attributes of your patient base, you can target your marketing and services to that group.

Additionally, understanding where your ideal patients spend their time online helps you understand the best online directories to list your services on .

3. Conduct a Patient Needs Assessment

To provide tailored, patient-centered care, it’s essential to conduct a patient needs assessment . This involves gathering feedback through surveys, interviews, and observations to determine what patients expect and require from your practice, what their preferences are, what their healthcare challenges are, and what unmet needs they have. 

4. SWOT Analysis

Perform a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis to evaluate your private practice’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as external opportunities and threats, such as competitors or a saturated market. This analysis helps you identify areas where your practice excels, where it needs improvement, potential growth opportunities, and potential challenges.

5. Analyze Trends 

Stay informed about current and emerging trends in the healthcare industry and your local area. This includes advancements in medical technology, evolving patient preferences, changes in healthcare policies and regulations, and market shifts.

By understanding these trends, you can adapt your practice to meet the evolving needs of your patients and the industry. 

Keep an eye out for trends that may play to your advantage or hinder your business in the future. By doing so, you will be as prepared as possible for any changes to things like insurance reimbursement and patient needs.

6. Analyze and Pivot

Market research is an ongoing process. Make sure you regularly monitor and track patient satisfaction and assess the effectiveness of your services and marketing strategies. In response to the feedback and data you collect, adjust your business plan and healthcare marketing tactics accordingly to fit the needs of your business and patient population.

Bottom Line on Healthcare Market Research

The primary objective of doing market research for medical practices, including nurse practitioners and therapists, is to develop a cohesive strategy that appeals to your ideal patient, a crucial aspect of which involves showcasing your services on various online platforms. 

While this task may initially appear time-consuming, the long-term benefits are undeniable. In today’s digital age, patients use the Internet and online platforms to discuss and access services, making it imperative to remain competitive and easily discoverable . 

An effective, time-saving solution is Kiwi Health’s patient growth platform , It gives you a comprehensive toolset to:

• List your services in more than 30 online directories, including Psychology Today and ZocDoc , eliminating the manual effort of listing on each platform yourself. 
• Build a professional website for your practice in 10 minutes and for free. 
• Optimize your website for SEO and get found in search engines.
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Development - Market research

You should do market research to determine the demand and need for your innovation. You should budget for this stage, as it is an integral part of your strategy to succeed.

Conducting rigorous, systematic market research can help to reduce risk and increase the chances of a successful product launch. However, with increasing market research regulations, and the often-high costs of talking with healthcare professionals, it is critical to ensure you are talking to the correct person and asking the right questions.

Early research with familiar professionals (friends, family, colleagues) is an excellent start and helps establish the questions to ask in wider research. Going on to speak in detail with a range of independent professionals who do not know the innovator and innovation are essential.

A genuine information or opinion-gathering approach should be used. Avoid using this time as a sales opportunity as much less will be learnt. If the individual is interested in following up, they will ask for this unprompted.

NICE's Office for Market Access (OMA) helps the life sciences industry engage with NICE, system partners and wider NHS stakeholders through fee-for-service engagement opportunities. NICE OMA also actively collaborates across the health landscape to direct enquiries to the most appropriate function. This service operates outside of NICE’s guidance-producing programmes. It help innovators engage at any stage along the development-to-adoption pathway, while gaining valuable insight to help inform the development of their market access strategy. This includes:

• identifying the most appropriate routes into the NHS
• understanding the changing healthcare landscape
• exploring the value proposition

Some innovators spend a great deal of time, money and effort to register their products successfully, only to learn too late that there was no market opportunity for their product.

It is important that you define your product's unique selling point early on in your value proposition. For example, if it is a remote monitoring system, what is different from competitors? Is it integrated with electronic patient records (EPRs), additional kit that monitors vital signs, more portable for patients, easier for clinicians to monitor?

You can browse the NHS Supply Chain catalogue for existing products and suppliers as part of your research into the existing market and competition.

Market research methodologies

There are different market research methodologies available which you could combine:

• in-depth interviews
• focus groups
• telephone interviews
• patient record forms (PRFs)
• computer-assisted telephone interviews
• online surveys
• market research online communities
• observational studies

Research should be undertaken with:

• relevant healthcare professionals (not just doctors, but all professions involved in the service)
• service business managers (who will have a different perspective than clinicians)
• commissioners (where relevant)
• senior IT staff (for innovations with a digital component)
• patients or the public

Clinicians may be a good place to start for introductions to these groups. If you are going to engage with an external company to do your market research, the Market Research Society (MRS) is a good place to learn more about engaging a company. They are the UK professional body for research, insight and analytics. Read their top ten tips on buying research .

Many Health Innovation Networks (HINs) will support local qualitative market research with clinicians and NHS managers, and can support quantitative research with NHS databases they have access to.

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What is the meaning of healthcare market research?

Healthcare market research means the systematic gathering, analysing, and interpretation of data specifically related to the healthcare sector. This can cover many elements, including patient behaviours, market trends, healthcare spending, pharmaceutical advancements, and treatment effectiveness. Healthcare market research provides invaluable insights that empower healthcare providers, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, and policymakers to improve the accuracy of their decision-making.

How does research benefit healthcare organisations?

The impact of healthcare market research is extensive. It informs decisions that enhance patient care, fosters innovation in product development, and supports strategic planning and policy formulation. Tapping into patient needs and preferences, healthcare market research paves the way for the development and delivery of more personalised, efficient, and effective healthcare solutions.

What are the research methodologies for healthcare sector market research?

Healthcare market research is a diverse field that employs a range of methodologies, each with its own unique advantages. The method chosen depends on the overall research objectives. This can include a blend of the following:

• Surveys: used to collect quantitative data from a large group of people, either online, over the phone, or face-to-face. They are useful in assessing patient satisfaction, product usage, or brand awareness.
• Interviews: provide qualitative data, interviews can be one-to-one or in small focus groups. They allow for a deeper understanding of individual experiences, opinions, and motivations.
• Observational studies: involve watching and recording behaviour in a natural setting without actively engaging with the subjects. This method can provide insights into real-world behaviour and usage patterns.
• Secondary research: involves analysing existing data or studies to gather insights. This can be both cost-effective and timesaving since the data has already been collected.
• Experimental research: often used in clinical trials, experimental research involves a control group and a test group to study the effectiveness of a treatment or procedure.
• Big data analysis: this allows for the study of large datasets to uncover patterns, correlations, and trends. This type of analysis is used in predictive modelling and healthcare forecasting.

Each method provides a unique perspective, and when used in combination, it can provide a comprehensive understanding of the healthcare market.

Why is it important to conduct healthcare market research?

There are six key reasons why healthcare research is essential. It helps to:

• Inform decisions and reduce risk : in the healthcare industry decisions can have life-altering consequences, so reducing uncertainty is critical. Which drugs should a pharmaceutical company develop? How should a hospital allocate resources? What are the best ways a policymaker can serve constituents? Market research helps to make these decisions less risky, increasing the likelihood of positive outcomes.
• Understand patient needs : market research allows healthcare providers to better understand patient needs, preferences, behaviours, and attitudes. This improves patient experiences, health outcomes, patient retention, and patient satisfaction scores. It also helps identify market opportunities, which leads to the development of new services or treatments.
• Drive innovation: in a rapidly evolving industry, technologies, treatments, and models of care are constantly emerging. If you want to remain at the forefront of these trends, research plays an essential role in informing the development and adoption of innovative solutions. Understanding what patients and healthcare providers want enables organisations to direct their innovation efforts effectively.
• Improve healthcare delivery: how effective is your healthcare delivery? What areas need improving? Understanding this at the level of individual patient care (such as improving the hospital patient experience) or at a systemic level (such as ways to increase access to healthcare in underserved communities) can improve the overall standard of healthcare.
• Navigate regulatory changes: in a heavily regulated, fast-moving industry, market research helps organisations anticipate and respond to changes. This means they can remain compliant, while also taking advantage of fresh opportunities.
• Measure performance: market research allows healthcare organisations to measure performance; both in terms of business metrics, such as market share or revenue, and health outcomes. These insights are beneficial for internal benchmarking, and demonstrate value to stakeholders, such as investors or regulators.

Summary: why should organisations conduct healthcare market research?

The healthcare industry is complex and dynamic. Decisions in this field have significant consequences. Market research is an essential tool to help organisations navigate this environment. It means that critical insights can drive informed decision-making, enhance patient care, foster innovation, and improve health outcomes.

How does research benefit healthcare organisations? The impact of healthcare market research is extensive. It informs decisions that enhance patient care, fosters innovation in product development, and supports strategic planning and policy formulation. Tapping into patient needs and preferences, healthcare market research paves the way for the development and delivery of more personalised, efficient, and effective healthcare solutions.

What are the research methodologies for healthcare sector market research? Healthcare market research is a diverse field that employs a range of methodologies, each with its own unique advantages. The method chosen depends on the overall research objectives. This can include a blend of the following:

Why is it important to conduct healthcare market research? There are six key reasons why healthcare research is essential. It helps to:

Summary: why should organisations conduct healthcare market research? The healthcare industry is complex and dynamic. Decisions in this field have significant consequences. Market research is an essential tool to help organisations navigate this environment. It means that critical insights can drive informed decision-making, enhance patient care, foster innovation, and improve health outcomes.

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Comprehensive Guide to Market Research in Pharma and Life Sciences

Market research is a critical component in the life sciences and biopharma industries, providing the necessary insights to make informed business decisions. This comprehensive guide aims to highlight the importance, types, key components, tools, and best practices of market research in pharma while addressing common challenges and future trends. Understanding market dynamics, including the patient journey in life sciences and the trends shaping the future of pharma, can significantly enhance strategic decision-making and competitive positioning.

The Importance of Market Research in Pharma

Pharma market research enables companies to understand market needs, identify opportunities, and develop effective strategies to stay competitive. Market research helps in navigating key challenges and opportunities in the life sciences industry, ensuring that decisions are data-driven and aligned with market demands.

Successful market research outcomes can be seen in enhanced product development, optimized marketing campaigns, and improved patient engagement. For instance, understanding the patient journey in life sciences helps tailor interventions that meet patient needs and preferences.

Types of Market Research in Pharma & Life Sciences Industry

Primary research.

Primary market research in pharma involves collecting original data directly from sources through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. This type of research is invaluable for gaining specific insights into patient behavior, preferences, and experiences. It can also provide direct feedback from healthcare professionals, aiding in understanding the patient journey in life sciences.

Secondary Research

Secondary research involves analyzing existing data from published sources such as scientific journals, market reports, and industry databases. This pharmaceutical market research type helps identify trends shaping the future of pharma and offers a broad understanding of the competitive landscape.

Quantitative Research

Quantitative research focuses on numerical data and statistical analysis. It involves methods like surveys with closed-ended questions, experiments, and data analytics. Quantitative research is essential for measuring market size, segmenting target audiences, and assessing the effectiveness of marketing campaigns through data-driven decision-making .

Qualitative Research

Qualitative research explores non-numerical data to understand underlying reasons, opinions, and motivations. Methods include ethnographic studies, in-depth interviews, and observational research. Qualitative insights are crucial for understanding complex patient behaviors and the contextual factors influencing healthcare decisions.

Key Components of a Market Research Study

Defining objectives.

Setting clear and actionable research goals is the first step in a pharma market research study. Objectives should align with the overall business strategy and address specific research questions, such as improving patient engagement or optimizing promotional strategies. Aligning objectives with the role of consulting in pharma success can lead to more impactful outcomes.

Research Design

Selecting appropriate methodologies and tools is essential for gathering relevant data. The research design should be tailored to meet the defined objectives, whether it's exploring the patient journey or analyzing market trends.

Data Collection

Gathering data through various means, such as surveys, interviews, and digital analytics, forms the core of pharmaceutical market research. Effective data collection tools are necessary to ensure data accuracy and reliability, which is critical for understanding the patient journey in life sciences.

Data Analysis

Techniques for analyzing and interpreting data include statistical analysis, thematic coding, and trend identification. Data analysis enables organizations to derive actionable insights and make informed decisions, emphasizing the importance of data-driven decision-making.

Reporting and Presentation

Effectively communicating findings through reports and presentations is vital for stakeholder engagement. Visual aids, executive summaries, and actionable recommendations help in translating pharma market research insights into strategic actions.

Tools and Techniques for Market Research

Data collection tools.

Surveys, questionnaires, and interviews are fundamental tools for collecting data. These tools help gather insights into patient experiences, healthcare professional opinions, and market dynamics, enhancing understanding of the patient journey in life sciences.

Analytical Tools

Software for statistical analysis and data visualization, such as SPSS, R, and Tableau, are crucial for processing and presenting data. Analytical tools support data-driven decision-making by transforming raw data into meaningful insights.

Market Analysis Techniques

Techniques like SWOT analysis, PEST analysis, and competitive analysis are used to evaluate the internal and external factors affecting an organization. These techniques provide a comprehensive view of pharma market growth opportunities and threats, aiding in strategic planning.

The Role of Technology in Modern Market Research

Ai and machine learning.

AI and machine learning technologies are revolutionizing market research for pharmaceutical companies by enhancing data analysis and predictive modeling. These technologies are integral to trends shaping the future of pharma, enabling more accurate and efficient research processes.

Also, Read: AI Applications in Qualitative Market Research

Big Data Analytics

Big data analytics leverages large datasets to uncover patterns, trends, and correlations. In the life sciences industry, big data analytics can provide deep insights into patient behaviors, treatment outcomes, and market dynamics, supporting data-driven decision-making.

Digital Platforms and Social Media

Digital platforms and social media are valuable sources of real-time data. Monitoring online conversations, reviews, and social media interactions can provide insights into patient sentiments and emerging trends, contributing to a better understanding of the patient journey in life sciences.

Best Practices for Conducting Market Research in Pharma

Ethical considerations.

Ensuring compliance with ethical standards is paramount in pharma market research. Ethical considerations include obtaining informed consent, protecting participant confidentiality, and ensuring data integrity. Adhering to ethical practices is essential for understanding the patient journey in life sciences.

Maintaining Data Integrity

Maintaining data integrity involves implementing robust data management and security measures. Accurate and reliable data is crucial for data-driven decision-making and ensuring research validity.

Continuous Improvement

Market research should be an iterative process, with continuous refinement of research strategies based on new insights and changing market dynamics. Consulting in pharma success plays a significant role in providing expert guidance and ensuring continuous improvement.

Challenges and Solutions in Pharma Market Research

Common challenges.

Market research in pharmaceutical faces several challenges, including data accuracy, participant recruitment, and budget constraints. Identifying key challenges and opportunities in the pharma and life sciences industry is essential for developing effective research strategies.

Proposed Solutions

Innovative approaches, such as leveraging technology and adopting flexible research methodologies, can help overcome common challenges. Solutions should focus on enhancing data quality, improving participant engagement, and optimizing resource allocation.

Future Trends in Market Research for Life Sciences

Emerging Technologies

Technologies like AI, machine learning, and blockchain are transforming pharma market research. These technologies are part of the trends shaping the future of pharma, enabling more precise and efficient research processes.

Changing Regulatory Landscape

The regulatory landscape in life sciences is continuously evolving. Adapting to new regulations is a key challenge and opportunity in the life sciences industry, requiring agile research methodologies and compliance strategies.

Evolving Market Dynamics

Understanding the patient journey in life sciences helps companies adapt to changing market dynamics. By staying attuned to patient needs and preferences, organizations can develop more effective products and services.

Market research in pharma is a vital tool for pharmaceutical and biotech companies, providing the insights needed to navigate the competitive landscape and achieve business objectives. By understanding the patient journey in life sciences and leveraging data-driven decision-making, companies can address key challenges and opportunities in the life sciences industry. Consulting in pharma success further enhances the impact of pharmaceutical market research, ensuring continuous improvement and strategic alignment.

ZoomRx, a strategic life sciences consulting firm offers specialized services and solutions to support your market research needs. Our expertise in AI-powered business development, sales force effectiveness in pharma , doctor patient dialogue research , and more ensures that your company can optimize its strategies and achieve its business objectives.

For more information on how ZoomRx can assist with your market research efforts, contact us today.

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Latest Trends in Healthcare Marketing [Research Insights]

Hayoung Cheon and Nah Lee

As the world faces a pandemic of a magnitude not witnessed for over 100 years, we are reminded of healthcare’s fundamental role in our interconnected world. Marketing as a discipline has not lived up to its potential contributions to this important aspect of our lives. The Journal of Marketing Special Issue on “ Marketing in the Healthcare Sector ” is dedicated to promoting research on healthcare marketing. Thirteen scholars from across the marketing discipline shared their views on unanswered questions facing marketing in the healthcare sector during a special session at the 2020 AMA Summer Academic Conference. A summary and video clip of their individual presentations follows.

Leonard Berry | University Distinguished Professor of Marketing, M.B. Zale Chair in Retailing and Marketing Leadership, Mays Business School, Texas A&M University

Underuse of Palliative Care and Hospice Services

One of healthcare’s most important jobs is to help people with advanced illnesses live as comfortably as possible until they die. Yet, many patients do not die how they wish, which is to be as pain-free as possible and at home surrounded by family. Two services are available in the U.S. for patients with advanced illness— palliative care and hospice . Both services provide comfort care (such as pain control) and emotional support for patients and their families.

However, palliative care and hospice services are grossly underutilized in the U.S. About 60% of patients who could benefit from palliative care do not receive it and 25% of hospice patients die within three days of enrollment even though insurance covers it for six months. How can marketing help improve the utilization of these valuable services that can help people live better at the end of life?

Poverty and Health

Another important topic is the impact of social determinants on health. Factors such as quality of housing and education, income levels, physical activity, and social support are far more influential in overall health and length of life than medical care. For example, life expectancy in a low-income Chicago area drops 16 years compared to an affluent neighborhood. Poverty’s links to health may seem an impossibly big and complex topic for marketing academics to tackle, but research teams can break this big puzzle into manageable pieces and make extraordinary contributions. Consider, for example, the opportunity for marketing to reimagine housing for low-income people such as being done in designing “purpose-built communities” such as Villages of East Lake in Atlanta, GA. Think of “purpose-built communities” as a complex new product to serve the needs of its customers and other stakeholders. We in marketing have the expertise to make these “products” much better.

Punam Keller | Senior Associate Dean of Innovation and Growth, Charles Henry Jones Third Century Professor of Management, Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth University

Ecosystem goal: The Role of Business and Marketing in the BIG Picture

Multiple factors determine health outcomes. As the current pandemic shows, health outcomes are the result of interactions across global and social elements, technology, governments, and organizations. Thus, to tackle health problems, marketing should work more with the parties that it has not done so very often in the past. For example, collaborative work with global organizations such as WHO, WTO, and COP can be advantageous.

Individual Behavioral Goal: Message-Behavior Tailoring Using Technology and AI

Switching the focus from the ecosystem level to the individual level, marketing should note that technology can be readily adapted to encourage behavioral changes that promote better health outcomes. For example, smartphones can be powerful if combined with tailored messages alerting patients when to take their medications. We can study the efficacy of the types of text messages across segments of patients to understand which types of message are most successful at promoting positive behavioral changes.

Irina Kozlenkova | Assistant Professor of Marketing, University of Virginia

Mitigating the Effects of Physician Turnover through Relationships

Relationships have an important role in healthcare marketing. Among many players in the healthcare ecosystem (which includes payers, purchasers, suppliers/distributors, and regulators), the physician-patient relationship is central to healthcare and is also related to other entities in the ecosystem.

One problem that has not been understood well is mitigating the effects of physician turnover. In 2017, healthcare jobs experienced 21% turnover, which is second only to the hospitality sector’s turnover rate. It is costly to replace health professionals ($100,000 to replace a registered nurse, $1,000,000 to replace a physician) and doing so negatively affects patients and organizations. It has been shown that typical retention initiatives that work in other industries do not work well in healthcare.

Relational mitigation strategies may be key to mitigating the negative impact of turnovers. We conducted qualitative interviews with employees from all levels of a big healthcare organization (from high level executives, physicians, nurses, to receptionists) and a patient survey, which we later matched with turnover data and patient health data. The data revealed a big variance between various departments in terms of staff structure – some had consistent structures, while others were more ad-hoc. We learned that it is important to pay attention not only to physician turnover, but also to other parties (RNs, MAs, PAs). Continuity of care with the other parties improves patient outcomes, such as retention by 45–75%. While often the most attention is paid to the central relationship between a physician and a patient, we found that to many patients, their relationships with other members of the healthcare team (e.g., nurses, medical assistants) were as or more important as the relationship with their physician. Proactive communication with recommendations for a replacement of a leaving party has also been shown to improve outcomes (41–91%).

Off-Labeling Prescribing

Another important problem to address is off-label prescribing. It is legal in many countries to prescribe drugs for conditions for which they have not been approved. This is a very common practice (over 20% of prescriptions are off-label), yet patients are often unaware of it because doctors are not required to tell them. Since drugs are used for conditions for which they have not been tested and approved, it can be risky, and sometimes deadly. Some populations (e.g., children, pregnant women) may disproportionally receive off-label prescriptions. Research shows that over 70% of off-label uses have little to no scientific support.

Two important research questions surrounding this issue are how to regulate off-label prescribing without stifling innovation and understanding how physicians make off-label prescribing decisions. Our preliminary research findings from a field conjoint study, matched with the actual prescription data, show that physicians are more likely to prescribe an off-label drug when they are similar to the patient (in gender or experiencing the same “issue”) and when they have more experience in the specialty. Also, higher prices of the approved drug tend to diminish the use of the cheaper off-label drug.

Cait Lamberton | Alberto I. Duran Distinguished Presidential Professor in Marketing, Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania

Micro: Biases Specific to Care Choices?

While we have done quite a lot of work to show that well-established biases exist in healthcare (as they do in any context), we also have a lot to learn about specific biases that may arise in healthcare choice making. One example is anti-community bias. Health outcomes are superior closer to home, given that closer-to-home facilities offer better accessibility and a closer relationship with doctors. With no other information, patients seem to prefer to stay close to home. However, when given a choice, patients tend to reject community hospitals in favor of more distant university-based hospitals, which do not necessarily lead to better outcomes for many standard procedures. Moreover, in rural areas (where 20% of the U.S. population resides) such biases may have long-lasting negative effects, as we see the increasing closures of community hospitals in rural areas. Given this tension between rural and community hospitals versus urban and university-based hospitals, understanding how patients make choices weighing different factors across these two types of hospitals and contemplating how and when marketing should tip the scales become crucial.

Macro: Satisfaction (with Healthcare)?

At the macro-level, marketing can focus on hospital satisfaction measurement. HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) measures patient experience including communication, pain management, and the quietness of the hospital environment. It is a widely used measure, freely available and, more importantly offers a huge opportunity to conduct interesting research. For example, an interesting area of research is the difference in the mode of delivery where more positive responses are attained through mobile devices than through computers. Researchers can also investigate the role of pain and the way it may be framed to help consumers deal with it in the most healthy manner, what types of advertising work well for healthcare facilities and providers, and how we can more accurately capture patient satisfaction as fully-conceptualized, and likely to be rooted in different, healthcare-specific experiences like empathy and respect for dignity, than might drive satisfaction with other goods and services.

John Lynch | University of Colorado Distinguished Professor, University of Colorado-Boulder

Health Care System Infomediaries

Healthcare expenses have experienced a six-fold increase in inflation-adjusted dollars since 1970. One major factor contributing to this increase is the absence of consumer price sensitivity. Insurers, the payers of this expense, cap the maximum out-of-pocket costs for the consumer. Even when patients are paying, they are often willing to pay all they can for a few more months of expected life. Furthermore, prices are opaque, even to doctors. This means that doctors do not know how much patients will be charged for a given procedure. They view it as impossible to know because it is dependent on insurance and not their job to know. How can marketing help incorporate price sensitivity in healthcare? Can we design pricing infomediary models to help doctors be better price shoppers for their patients?

Health Privacy & Quality of Care

Another interesting topic is health privacy and quality of care. HIPPA regulations govern the uses and disclosures of personal health information. Patients have rights over their health information and can authorize certain health records to be disclosed. How many consumers know who has what records and how does this affect the transmission of health history information that could benefit care?

Utilizing health data is analogous to the literature on customer identification in advertising, pricing, and personalized recommendations. Sharing information has benefits, but there are also risks of exploitation. Can we develop models for patient ownership and sharing of personal health information that promote better health outcomes?

Detelina Marinova | Sam Walton Distinguished Professor of Marketing, University of Missouri

Physician-Patient Digital Communications for Improved Health Outcomes

Provider-patient interactions are crucial in healthcare and we see a shift of the mode of communication from in-person to digital platforms, especially during the pandemic. However, research has just started to address digital communication in healthcare. Digital communication can be beneficial because it reduces office visits, which can improve efficiency. However, it can also increase physician workload in other ways and digital communication bears a risk of miscommunication. Thus, it is important to understand why and under what conditions digital communication between patients and providers contributes to patient compliance, engagement, and improved health outcomes.

Managing Frontline Interactions for Patient Well-Being and Hospital Revenue

Hospital spending constitutes 30% of national health expenditures, yet it is challenging to deliver high quality and cost-efficient health outcomes. With this tension, there are trade-off s between hospital revenue and patient well-being. One crucial aspect affecting both hospital spending and health outcomes is frontline interactions, which includes proactive actions by physicians and nurses and reactive actions by staffs. These often shape patients’ behavioral approach to medical conditions and treatments, thereby influencing the patients’ well-being. Moreover, it can be either a revenue source or a high-cost factor for hospitals. Therefore, one potential research question is how proactive and reactive actions of frontline agents contribute to or alleviate the trade-offs from the dual-emphasis on hospital revenues and patient well-being.

Vikas Mittal | J. Hugh Liedtke Professor of Marketing, Jones Graduate School of Business, Rice University

Health Care & Marketing

Conducting successful research in healthcare has a few issues that are uncommon in other sectors. First, problem-solving and practical relevance is critical in healthcare. Collaborators in health systems may not be interested in laborious “theory.” Hence, it is important to focus on relevant problems with basic rigor rather than thin-slicing or engaging in complicated quantitative analyses.

Second, research modesty is important for successful collaboration. A marketing perspective can contribute to solving healthcare problems, which is a much better approach than trying to solve a marketing problem with healthcare only as a “context.” For example, problem-oriented research questions may be: 1. How can a pharmacy chain manage its segmentation in different locations? and 2. How can nursing homes improve employee retention to improve healthcare outcomes?

Third, it is important to learn the differences in process as well as in incentive structures. In healthcare, grants are more critical than publications, so learning how to contribute to the grant-writing process is vital. Regarding publications, in medical journals, authorship and authorship order follow a pre-defined structure. Lastly, data privacy and data integrity issues are paramount and often university-level permissions are needed, which can be time-consuming.

Despite the unique characteristics of the field, there are many marketing research opportunities to gain a deeper understanding of medical and healthcare problems and teaching opportunities for training health professionals for rewarding careers.

Maura Scott | Madeline Duncan Rolland Professor of Marketing, Florida State University

Stigma and Vulnerability in Healthcare: Solutions through Technology?!

Stigmatized consumers experience a distinct healthcare journey relative to other consumers. Stigmatization can aversely influence the quality of care that patients receive from healthcare providers. Stigmatization in healthcare can limit patients’ willingness to engage in their treatment, thereby potentially further harming their health outcomes. Sources of stigma include certain patients’ characteristics such as race, ethnicity, and body type. Some diseases may be stigmatized based on the perceptions of visibility, controllability, permanence, or contagion associated with the disease. Vulnerable populations (e.g., underrepresented minority groups) may face these two sources of stigmatization at the same time, further affecting their well-being. Identifying interventions that help encourage stigmatized patients overcome the reluctance to engage in their healthcare (e.g., via online healthcare communities) is crucial. More research should identify policies that create an inclusive, equitable, and accessible healthcare system.

Technology in Healthcare: Tensions and Solutions

One potential way to tackle low engagement from stigmatized patients is to leverage relevant technology in healthcare. There are concerns and tensions to consider when developing such solutions. First, technology can reduce stigmatization because it can reduce human interaction; however, technology programmed with inherent bias could increase stigmatization. Second, technology could lower costs and increase accessibility for vulnerable patients. Yet, income level can make a difference in healthcare service quality, for example by separating ‘premium’ in-person service for the wealthy, which might lead back to the current status quo. Third, technology can influence patients’ anxiety levels, which suggests the need for healthcare interventions to help reduce anxiety triggered by technology. More research is needed to identify how to leverage technology in healthcare to increase accessibility and inclusivity of high quality, low-cost healthcare for all patients. 

Steven Shugan | McKethan-Matherly Eminent Scholar Chair and Professor, Warrington College of Business, University of Florida

Changes in Healthcare Markets

Marketing can address several interesting issues in changing healthcare markets. Service mix has been addressed in recent work, highlighting the fact that services offered by non-profit hospitals differ from those offered by for-profit hospitals. More research on service mix is needed. Websites hosted by hospitals and other healthcare providers can serve multiple roles—information provision (education) and selling (referrals). Research on multiple role healthcare websites would be valuable. New product launches are also an interesting problem in healthcare, with many new devices facing complications when being brought to market because of licensing issues and multiple players (including regulators, competitors with patents and courts).

Block-chain is a new encryption technology that may enable the storage of sensitive healthcare data. Marketing research can address the interaction of these databases with multiple parties also with privacy concerns. The interaction of these databases with consumers is a typical marketing communications issue. Artificial intelligence also has made its way into healthcare integration, from reading x-rays to making diagnoses, yet the AI-consumer interface is a marketing issue with many unanswered questions.

Other changes in healthcare markets that merit further research include the effect of changes in government regulation of the healthcare industry, the impact of for-profit entry in the existing market, and the implications of declining patient co-pays. Marketing communication in a heavily regulated environment with both business-to-business and business-to-consumer issues provides many research topics.

Healthcare Data Sources

There are many publicly available data sources in healthcare. Links for these data sources appear in the attached slide. Many of these datasets can be integrated based on geography (e.g., zip codes, FIPS, states, counties, etc.). My slides indicate many sources of free healthcare data. I and coauthors have also purchased data from American Hospital Directory and combined that data with data from free sources.

Jagdip Singh | AT&T Professor, Case Western Reserve University

Frontlines in Hyper-Markets

The pandemic has underscored the importance of getting ahead of the healthcare curve in uncertain and fast-changing healthcare markets. Research opportunities lie in the study of “outside-in” and “inside-out” frontline capabilities in healthcare organizations for demand anticipation and response agility that yield effective outcomes.  These capabilities require an integration of ground-level experience with data-based analytics at speed.  Several research contributions in Marketing can be useful to facilitate understanding of these capabilities including adaptive foresight, strategic flexibility, velocity and marketing excellence.  Some potential ways to seed research is to leverage public data such as ‘Red Dawn’ emails or data from wearable-sensor technology. 

Temporary Organizing for Public Health

The uncertain nature of healthcare markets can sometimes stem from public health and humanitarian crises such as climate change, war, disease, migration, and other conflicts. Many different organizations, such as the Red Cross, NGOs, and Doctors Without Borders, come together to address these crises. The challenges involved collaboration, coalition, and conflict in temporary meta-organizations to yield effective outcomes. Several research contributions in Marketing can be useful to facilitate understanding of these challenges including cause-driven marketing, mega-marketing and temporary marketing organizations.  Potential for funding projects and data comes from Gates Foundation grants, Business Roundtable priorities, and community data.

Hari Sridhar | Joe B. Foster’56 Chair in Business Leadership Professor of Marketing, Mays Business School, Texas A&M University

Marketing in the Healthcare Sector: Improving Cancer Outreach Effectiveness

Marketing research in the healthcare sector can complement and embellish medical research. It is important to recognize that not all patients are created equal. We can leverage more than 60 years of marketing research on customer needs and the latest developments in machine learning. Using predictive models, we can also demonstrate the social and financial impact of healthcare interventions. Doing so can help the field of marketing become a value-added support arm to healthcare.

In our study 1 of cancer outreach effectiveness, we use patient data and predictive models to improve returns on cancer outreach efforts. Only 4-8% of the general population undergoes regular cancer screening, despite massive spending on preventive outreach campaigns. In an National Institute of Health (NIH) supported study in partnership with UT-Southwestern, we conduct a large scale randomized field experiment to study how cancer screening visits are impacted by different types of cancer outreach efforts. Using a smorgasbord of variables concatenated from medical histories, geographical information, and the outreach program CRM data, we apply causal forests to estimate the causal effect of outreach efforts for every individual patient. We find that patient response to cancer screening varies dramatically across the population, enabling the dream of personalized outreach programs. By targeting the right people with the right intervention, we show that cancer outreach programs can save money and improve yield (over 74% in returns) in preventive cancer screening. Can marketing save lives and money? Our answer is a resounding yes.

It is also critical to understand the innards of the healthcare value chain and move beyond just the study of patient-physician and patient-facility interfaces. Other marketing scholars are now addressing issues surrounding multiple players in designing care facilities and improving quality of care, the complexities of hospital purchasing contracts, and the impact of regulatory interventions on payment disclosures. The field is ripe with other relevant questions and we are merely scratching the surface.

Featured in JM Webinar: https://www.ama.org/events/webinar/jm-webinar-series-insights-for-managers/

S Sriram | Professor of Marketing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Technology has the potential to have a significant impact on the healthcare ecosystem. More importantly, the impact is likely to be felt by all stakeholders in the ecosystem. I consider two examples here.

The Internet of Health Things

In recent years, there has been a considerable increase in the use of wearable devices and apps by consumers, who use these devices for monitoring various markers of physiological and psychological well being. Broadly, these hardware devices and software applications come under the realm of Internet of Things (IoT). Do these devices, which are supposed to monitor health actually lead to better health outcomes and well being? Extant literature has documented mixed results because of several reasons. First, purchasing a device or downloading an app does not necessarily translate into repeat usage. Researchers have documented that consumers routinely lose interest after a few months. Second, even in instances where interest does not wane over time, routinely monitoring markers of health can lead to excessive obsession, which can be detrimental to overall well being. Third, even if we can establish a positive effect of these devices on health outcomes and overall well-being using observational data, one needs to be careful to control for patient self-selection – purchasers of these devices are likely to be different from those who chose not to purchase them.

The effect of these devices and apps can extend beyond patients. In this regard, how an individual’s health monitoring efforts can benefit other stakeholders in the whole ecosystem can be studied. For example, providers might see the reduced hospital readmission rate as shown in some literature and can potentially ensure adherence to medication taken outside hospitals. Drug manufacturers can increase the speed of drug development faster with regularly monitored data, as opposed to relying on self-reported measures. Of course, the downside is that such regular monitoring can be intrusive and raise concerns about loss of privacy. A careful quantification of the benefits of monitoring patient health information can help in assessing whether the benefits of sharing consumer data outweigh the risks associated with the violation of privacy.

Telemedicine

Although the idea of telemedicine has been around for a few years, COVID-19 has made it a reality for many consumers of healthcare. The promise of telemedicine lies in its potential to relax wealth, accessibility, time, and skills constraints. This, in turn, can democratize healthcare. However, there are several important questions that need to be answered in order to assess whether and how this promise is realized. First, is the actual and perceived quality of a telemedicine service as good as in-person visits? Are there any particular risks of misdiagnosis from telemedicine? Second, the benefits delivered by telemedicine might not be evenly distributed across different stakeholders. For example, what benefits do patients and other stakeholders such as providers, payers, and telemedicine platforms derive from the new mode of healthcare delivery? How are these benefits distributed among the various stakeholders? How does the relaxation of the aforementioned constraints benefit patients? Does the benefit vary across patients’ socioeconomic status? Lastly, one can study the challenges that telemedicine might face in building a stable platform.

Richard Staelin | Gregory Mario and Jeremy Mario Professor of Business Administration, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University

Patient Experience Questions

Patient experience data has been collected for decades. However, until recently, most of these data came from standard surveys given to patients after they received treatment. Over the last few years free-form texts, such as reviews, have become increasing available. This new source of input from the patients may provide additional information to more traditional “rating-only” surveys. Do patient reviews of doctors differ substantially from customer reviews in other sectors? Do these reviews provide new information over the standard surveys?

There may be distinct segments of patients that vary in terms of their ability to judge the quality of service received. What is the size of the sophisticated market segment and can it influence the behavior of medical professionals? It would also be interesting to understand whether patients’ view of the quality of care differs across venues of service (e.g., emergency room, hospital, clinic). How is the perceived quality different from the objective quality measures currently used by medical practitioners?

Organizational Reaction to Patient Experience Data

Patient experience data are relevant to hospital management and insurance companies. Do they pay more attention to some databases over others depending on the source? How much should they weigh patient experience data compared to objective or clinical measures of quality? What are the profit implications for the hospital/company? The reaction of the medical staff is also a critical factor in understanding the impact of patient feedback data. Are providers receptive to such feedback by the patients and, if so, do their ability to adapt to feedback depend on the type of information? For example, patient feedback may be regarding bedside manners, receiving faulty advice, or being overcharged. Medical professionals may try to improve bedside manners and avoid billing mistakes, but it may be very difficult (or costly) to alter diagnostic practices.

Learn more about the Journal of Marketing Special Issue on “ Marketing in the Healthcare Sector ” and note that for those interested, submissions  must be made between July 1, 2021 and November 1, 2021.

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Refine your search, u.s. tele-intensive care unit market - focused insights 2024-2029.

Sep 18, 2024  |  Published by: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence  |  USD 1,800

... AI & ML In Virtual ICU Systems Integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning technologies holds tremendous promise for enhancing the capabilities of virtual ICU systems. These advanced technologies have the potential to revolutionize patient ... Read More

U.S. Corporate Wellness Market - Industry Outlook & Forecast 2024-2029

Sep 11, 2024  |  Published by: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence  |  USD 4,200

... Technology Driven Solutions Technology continues to play a significant role in advancing employee wellness. In 2023, wearable devices, mobile applications, and online platforms are being utilized to easily track physical activity, sleep patterns, and stress ... Read More

Safety Cabinets Market - Global Outlook & Forecast 2024-2029

Sep 06, 2024  |  Published by: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence  |  USD 4,200

... Double-Walled Safety Cabinets Double-walled safety cabinets provide essential features to ensure laboratory safety. Their secure locking mechanisms restrict unauthorized access, reducing the risk of accidents and misuse of hazardous materials. Integrated spill containment and drainage ... Read More

Global Epinephrine Auto-Injection Market - Focused Insights 2024-2029

Aug 25, 2024  |  Published by: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence  |  USD 2,990

... Auto-injectors at Pharma/Retail stores The increasing demand for generic epinephrine auto-injectors at pharmaceutical and retail stores reflects a growing awareness of the importance of accessibility and affordability in emergency medical care. As more individuals recognize ... Read More

Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Healthcare Market - Focused Insights 2024-2029

Aug 19, 2024  |  Published by: Arizton Advisory and Intelligence  |  USD 2,990

... Emergence of New AI Startups for Healthcare AI in healthcare is an emerging trend that has led to an increased number of new startups across the global market. The emergence of new startups in the ... Read More

Continuing Care & Assisted Living Facilities

Aug 12, 2024  |  Published by: First Research, Inc.  |  USD 129

... include Brookdale Senior Living, Five Star Senior Living, and Sunrise Senior Living (all based in the US), as well as Housing 21 (UK), Sienna Senior Living (Canada), and Tertianum (Switzerland). COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE Demand for continuing ... Read More

General Surgeons

... primarily by population growth and rates of critical illness and injury. The profitability of individual practices depends mainly on expertise and reputation. Larger practices may enjoy economies of scale in administration and equipment purchasing. Smaller ... Read More

Pediatricians

... by demographics. The profitability of pediatrics practices depends on efficient operations and health care reimbursement rates. Large practices may be able to leverage the costs of administrative staff and equipment. Small or solo practices may ... Read More

Therapy Companies in China

Aug 07, 2024  |  Published by: Asia Market Information & Development Company  |  USD 1,800

... manufacturing capabilities and rising consumer consumptions in China have transformed China’s society and economy. China is one of the world’s major producers for industrial and consumer products. Far outpacing other economies in the world, China ... Read More

In Vitro Fertilization Market Size, Share & Trends by Product (Equipment, Reagent, Accessories), Equipment (Imaging, Incubator, Microscope, Micromanipulator), Procedure (Conventional, ICSI, donor), Cycle (Fresh, Frozen), End-user (Hospital, Clinic) - Global Forecast to 2029

Aug 07, 2024  |  Published by: MarketsandMarkets  |  USD 4,950

... global in vitro fertilization market is projected to reach USD 1,650 million by 2029 from USD 949 million in 2024, growing at a CAGR of 11.7% during the forecast period. The projected market growth for ... Read More

Therapy Markets in China

Aug 07, 2024  |  Published by: Asia Market Information & Development Company  |  USD 4,000

... a high speed growth which has been stimulated by the consecutive increases of industrial output, import & export, consumer consumption and capital investment for over two decades. This new study examines China's economic trends, investment ... Read More

Therapy Industry Forecasts - China Focus

... capabilities and rising consumer consumptions in China have transformed China’s society and economy. China is one of the world’s major producers for industrial and consumer products. Far outpacing other economies in the world, China is ... Read More

Dental Laboratories - 2024 U.S. Market Research Report with Updated Recession Risk Forecasts

Aug 05, 2024  |  Published by: Kentley Insights  |  USD 295

... United States with over 100 data sets covering 2015-2028. This 63-page Kentley Insights report is packed with insightful data sets and forecasts to give you a comprehensive understanding of the industry including historical and forecasted ... Read More

2024 Routine Veterinary Examinations Global Market Size & Growth Report with Updated Recession Risk Impact

... across 4 global regions (The Americas, Europe, Asia & Oceania, Africa & Middle East), 22 subregions, and 195 countries. Figures are from 2012 through 2023, with forecasts for 2024 and 2028. The historical data utilizes ... Read More

2024 Surgical Treatment of Animals Global Market Size & Growth Report with Updated Recession Risk Impact

... and share across 4 global regions (The Americas, Europe, Asia & Oceania, Africa & Middle East), 22 subregions, and 195 countries. Figures are from 2012 through 2023, with forecasts for 2024 and 2028. The historical ... Read More

2024 Surgical Periodontal Services Global Market Size & Growth Report with Updated Recession Risk Impact

2024 temporary health care staffing services global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact.

... revenue, growth, and share across 4 global regions (The Americas, Europe, Asia & Oceania, Africa & Middle East), 22 subregions, and 195 countries. Figures are from 2012 through 2023, with forecasts for 2024 and 2028. ... Read More

2024 Tissue Bank Services Global Market Size & Growth Report with Updated Recession Risk Impact

2024 organ bank services global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact, 2024 orthodontics global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact.

... (The Americas, Europe, Asia & Oceania, Africa & Middle East), 22 subregions, and 195 countries. Figures are from 2012 through 2023, with forecasts for 2024 and 2028. The historical data utilizes in-depth survey results from ... Read More

2024 Preventative Dental Services Global Market Size & Growth Report with Updated Recession Risk Impact

2024 health screening services global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact, 2024 home nursing care services global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact, 2024 industrial 'clean room' garments supply global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact, 2024 residential facility hospice care services global market size & growth report with updated recession risk impact.

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MedTech start-ups: A comprehensive scoping review of current research trends and future directions

Olga kalinowska-beszczyńska.

1 Division of Public Health & Social Medicine, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland

Katarzyna Prędkiewicz

2 Finance Department, Wroclaw University of Economics and Business, Wroclaw, Poland

Associated Data

All relevant data are within the manuscript and its Supporting Information files.

Medical start-ups (MedTech) significantly contribute to the development and commercialization of innovative healthcare solutions, driving advancements in technology, enhancing treatment effectiveness, and supporting public health. This study explores the main themes and concepts related to MedTech start-ups, examines the research methods used, and identifies major gaps in the literature. A scoping literature review was performed by searching the Scopus, PubMed, and Web of Science databases for publications from 2012 to 2023, focusing on MedTech start-ups in titles, abstracts, and keywords. References were analyzed using the Bibliometrix package in R, and a coupling network analysis was conducted, visualizing results on a Coupling Map to identify key research themes and gaps. The research identified 480 unique articles on MedTech start-ups. After removing duplicates and following a PRISMA-based assessment, 79 articles were included in the review. The studies predominantly focused on organizations, including start-ups and Venture Capital funds (46%). Most articles (60%) used qualitative methods, 25% employed mixed methods, and 15% used quantitative methods. Geographically, 63% of articles focused on a single country, primarily the USA (35%), followed by Iran, Sweden, Switzerland, China, and Japan (2–4% each). Coupling analysis identified five topic clusters: crowdfunding for medical research, innovation in medical technology, new product development, digital start-ups, and the venture capital industry. This review highlights the significant role of MedTech start-ups in advancing healthcare innovations despite challenges like regulatory hurdles and high capital requirements. The literature emphasizes the importance of collaboration among universities, industry, and government for successful commercialization. The geographic concentration in the USA indicates a need for more inclusive research. Crowdfunding and venture capital emerge as crucial funding sources, suggesting strategies to mitigate risks and enhance innovation success.

Introduction

Medical start-ups (MedTech) are at the forefront of addressing the numerous challenges facing modern healthcare systems. As the global population grows and ages, healthcare systems worldwide are under increasing pressure to provide high-quality care with limited financial resources. Medical start-ups offer promising solutions by enhancing the efficiency of medical services, spanning prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and patient management.

MedTech start-ups can be defined as companies that develop and commercialize new medical technologies and innovations. These innovations can be categorized into two primary areas: In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) and Medical Devices. IVD includes tools such as self-tests for pregnancy or genetic tests for cancer, which provide critical health information from biological samples [ 1 ]. Medical Devices cover a diverse array of applications, from cardiology equipment to orthopedic implants, each designed to address specific medical needs [ 2 ].

From an economic perspective, the MedTech industry is a significant driver of growth and innovation. It has consistently outperformed the Standard&Poor index (S&P index) by 15% over the past three decades [ 3 ]. The S&P 500 index constitutes a financial metric that quantifies the equity performance of 500 prominent corporations traded on American stock exchanges. It is commonly esteemed as a primary indicator of the aggregate market dynamics in the United States. The MedTech industry’s sustained outperformance of this index highlights its robust growth and resilience. Additionally, the industry is projected to reach a market volume of USD 719.20 billion by 2028, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.73% between 2023 and 2028 [ 4 ]. This growth is fuelled by advancements in technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), big data analytics, and wearable devices, alongside demographic shifts like aging populations and increasing prevalence of chronic diseases, rising demand for personalized medicine [ 5 ], and finally patient education and engagement [ 6 ].

Venture Capital (VC) investment in MedTech start-ups has also surged, with a compound annual growth rate of 29% between 2017 and 2021. Investors are particularly drawn to innovations in AI and robotics, which hold significant promise for transforming healthcare delivery [ 7 ]. Despite this interest, MedTech start-ups face numerous challenges, including stringent regulatory environments, complex market dynamics, and high capital requirements for product development and commercialization [ 3 ].

In this context, the aim of this paper is to identify and evaluate the current state of academic literature on MedTech enterprises by examining the types of conducted research, key themes discussed, and significant findings, as well as suggesting potential avenues for future research. Specifically, we seek to address the following research questions:

• What are the main themes and concepts related to MedTech start-ups?
• What research methods are employed in studies concerning MedTech enterprises?
• What are the major gaps in the literature regarding MedTech start-ups?
• What are the emerging trends and future directions in the research and development of MedTech start-ups?

Through a scoping review of existing studies, we aim to provide a comprehensive overview of the MedTech start-up landscape and offer insights that can inform future research, policy-making, and practical applications within the industry.

Materials and method

The scoping approach was selected as the most appropriate form of literature review. It allows mapping of the body of literature on a topic area [ 8 ] by systematically searching for, selecting, and analysing relevant scholarly articles to identify the key concepts, main sources, and research gaps in the literature.

The applied protocol is aligned with the guidelines provide by Peters et at., [ 9 , 10 ] and includes the following sections: title; background; objectives; inclusion criteria; concepts; context; searching; extracting and charting the results; discussion; conclusion and implication for research and practice. In essence, this protocol outlines the plan for conducting a scoping review, which involves examining scholarly literature to comprehend a topic, pinpoint gaps in knowledge, and identify potential avenues for future research.

The goal of our scoping review was twofold: firstly, to comprehensively assess the scope, diversity, and characteristics of research endeavours; and secondly, to identify areas where the current literature lacks investigation. There were two core research themes that our work specifically focuses on. The first theme centred around medical innovation, considering various aspects related to commercialization of new products such as: acceptance, adaptation, and evaluation of technology in the healthcare sector. The second theme revolves around MedTech start-ups, where we explored factors that impact their creation, growth and potential setbacks, including financing and fundraising opportunities.

To identify relevant papers, we formulated a set of search terms and keywords, including: "medtech," "start-up," "medical innovation," "commercialization," "success factor," and "financing" to be searched in the titles, keywords, and abstracts of potentially relevant articles. Further, we have exhaustively utilized those terms and words in different configurations. The comprehensive list is presented below:

(medtech AND start-up) OR (medical AND innovation AND start-up) OR (medical AND innovation AND start-up AND commercialization) OR (commercialization AND of AND medical AND technology AND start-up) OR (medical AND start-up AND success AND factors) OR (medtech AND start-up AND financial AND constraints) OR (medtech AND start-up AND fundrising) OR (medical AND technology AND commercialization AND smes) OR (medical AND start-up AND failure) OR (medtech AND innovation AND financing) OR (ehealth AND start-up) OR (medical AND venture AND capital) OR (medical AND crowdfunding)

The initial screening of articles was based on the following criteria:

• Must be a research study.
• No restrictions on the geographic region.
• Written in English.
• Published between 2012 and 2022.
• Appeared in a peer-reviewed journal.
• Indexed in Scopus, PubMed, or Web of Science (WoS).

Following the primary search, the database was refined to include articles that met the following specific criteria, which also served as search parameters:

• Focus on medical start-ups.
• Discussion on the commercialization of medical innovation.
• Exploration of financing for medical start-ups.
• Identification of success factors relevant to medical start-ups.
• Exclusion criteria applied during the selection process were:
• Contextual inconsistencies.
• Unaccepted document formats, such as notes or editorials.
• Non-English language.

In order to systematize the collected information, a spreadsheet was created. It allowed categorisation of publications according to the year of publication, study type, country of publication, subject of research, research technique, significant findings, and potential avenues for further research. At this stage of analysis we utilized the NVivo software to code the research questions, main findings and future research. The results of analysis are presented in next section.

To conduct bibliometric analysis, we applied the Bibliometrix, which is a free and open-source R tool for quantitative research in scientometrics, bibliometrics [ 11 ]. Bibliometrix proved to be an efficient tool to import, analyse and visualize bibliographic data from different sources (i.e. Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed) and can perform various types of bibliometric analyses. The web-based interface–Biblioshiny–provided interactive graphs, enabled generation of descriptive statistics, allowed coupling analysis, and performed clustering analysis. Additionally, we utilized the tool’s visualizations, such as word clouds and trend topics to present the bibliometric data.

Cluster analysis was used to identify the main thematic groups. Each of the clusters was characterised and an analysis of the main research questions, key findings, and suggested potential areas of investigation mentioned in the articles was conducted.

A coupling network analysis was conducted, and the results of community detection were plotted on a two-dimensional map known as the Coupling Map. This analysis can be conducted on three different units: documents, authors, or sources, and the strength of coupling can be measured using either the classical approach, which involves coupling by references, or a novel approach that incorporates unit contents such as keywords or terms from titles and abstracts. In our case the coupling measures were titles and impact measure global citation score, whereas clusters were labelled by title terms using unigrams (single words). On the Coupling Map, the x-axis represents the cluster centrality, measured by Callon’s Centrality index, while the y-axis measures the cluster impact through the Mean Normalized Local Citation Score (MNLCS). The Normalized Local Citation Score (NLCS) of a document is calculated by comparing the actual count of local citing items to the expected citation rate for documents published in the same year [ 11 ]. Callon’s Centrality index takes into account various factors such as the number of connections, the strength of those connections, and the positions of actors within the network. By analysing these factors, the index provides a quantitative measure of the centrality of a cluster in relation to other clusters in the network [ 12 ].

Results and discussion

Literature search.

A total of 480 articles were identified during the search, with 126 articles in PubMed, 265 articles in WoS, and 396 articles in Scopus (the last articles search was made in May 2023). After merging the results and removing duplicate records, we obtained 480 unique articles ( Table 1 ). The pair-comparison of databases reviled that Scopus and WoS had the highest percentage of duplicated documents (49%), while the lowest percentage was found between Scopus and PubMed (19%). Overall, we observed that PubMed had the lowest duplication rate compared to other databases included in the research. In terms of article population Scopus contained the highest number of unique articles (193), followed by PubMed (39) and WoS (36).

Source: Authors’ elaboration

To identify pertinent studies, we thoroughly assessed the abstracts of all articles using the selection criteria outlined in the PRISMA chart ( Fig 1 ).

Source: Authors’ elaboration based on PRISMA methodology.

During the initial screening phase, we excluded 250 articles. The majority of which were deemed irrelevant due to content inconsistency such as focus on medical crowdfunding or patient-oriented donations. Other reasons for exclusion included clinical research and public health and hospital efficiency.

In the subsequent screening phase, an additional 151 articles were excluded primarily due to content inconsistency as well as other reasons such as inadequate form of the document. Ultimately, a total of 79 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the scoping review.

Study characteristics

Results presented in Table 2 refer to a set of bibliometric analyses, including information about the timespan of publication, sources, document characteristics, authorship, and collaboration patterns. Thus setting a context for further investigation of the field.

Source: Authors’ elaboration using Bibliometrix

The analysis covered a timespan from the year 2012 to the year 2022, utilizing data from 70 different sources. The number of academic articles published in the area of med-tech start-up is relatively small compared to the attention that is given to the subject in the industry led discussions and publications.

Turning to detailed description we observe that documents under investigation were published approximately 4.17 years ago. Each document received an average of 11.43 citations, which indicated the level of scholarly attention they garnered. Furthermore, the average number of citations per year per document was found to be 2.012, indicating the ongoing impact and influence of the documents over time. The documents collectively cited a total of 3,389 references, reflecting the breadth of scholarly sources consulted.

Considering the authors engagement we identified a total of 283 authors contributed to the analysed papers, with their appearances amounting to 300 individual contributions. The majority of the documents had multiple authors, indicating a collaborative approach to research.

Further insights were gained by examining the collaboration patterns among authors. Within our sample only 12 documents were single-authored. On average, there were 3.46 authors per document. The collaboration index indicating the overall level of authors’ collaboration was calculated at the level of 3.94 points.

The applied methodology allowed us to analyse keywords used to describe the articles. Specifically, there were 553 unique additional keywords known as "KeyWords Plus (ID)," and 296 unique author-assigned keywords known as "Author’s Keywords (DE)." KeyWords Plus are words or phrases that frequently appear in the titles of an article’s references, but do not appear in the title of the article itself. They are generated automatically by special algorithms in bibliometrics’ databases. These keywords reflect the various topics and themes covered within the analysed documents.

One may observe a growing interest of the research community in the subject of MedTech start-ups. This is illustrated by the general upward trend in the number of published research ( Fig 2 ). The majority of articles (69%) were published between 2017 and 2022, indicating a concentrated period of research activity in this field. The average annual growth rate for the analysed period between 2012 and 2022, was observed at a steady increase of 19%.

Source: Authors’ elaboration using Bibliometrix.

The most active authors were Muhos (co-author of 3 articles) and Saarela (2 articles together with Muhos). Three articles focused on growth management of e-health service start-ups [ 13 ], management priorities of digital health service start-ups in California [ 14 ] and digital healthcare service start-ups case studies from Sweden [ 15 ].

The most cited document was titled “ Who takes you to the dance ? How partners institutional logics influence innovation in young firms ” by Pahnke, Katila, and Eisenhardt [ 16 ]. Thus it might be characterised as the most widely acknowledged and highest impact paper in the sample. This study is relevant to MedTech start-ups as it reveals how the institutional logics of different funding partners (venture capitalists, corporate venture capitalists, government agencies) impact innovation, helping these start-ups strategically choose partners to enhance their innovation outcomes.

Considering the geographical location the analysed articles predominantly focused on the medical start-up topic within a single country (63%). Approximately 10% of the articles explored the subject matter in multiple countries settings, ranging from two to twelve countries. Only one article addressed the topic in the a global scale perspective. Among the single-country studies, American medical start-ups garnered the highest level of interest from researchers, accounting for 35% of all articles. Iran, Sweden, Switzerland, China, and Japan also received attention, with each country representing 2–4% of the articles. The remaining research primarily centred on various European countries, such as Belgium, France, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Spain.

There is a notable gap in the literature due to the predominance of research focused on the USA. To gain a more comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon, it is essential to conduct more diverse and inclusive studies that encompass a wider range of countries and regions.

From the research object we identified the following streams. The vast majority of papers focused on organizations, including start-ups and Venture Capital funds, accounting for 46% (n = 37) of the articles. A smaller fraction of the papers explored policies or programs related to medical start-ups, representing 9% (n = 7) of the total. Also crowdfunding campaigns gained interest as a potential source of financing for new ventures in the MedTech field received attention. Other areas of research encompassed collaboration models, industry analysis, patents, projects, and stakeholders, with each topic representing 1% of the articles. However, a significant portion, 33% (n = 27), could not be classified into any specific subject category due to their broader focus on different aspects of the med-tech industry without a clear thematic focus. We may conclude that the research predominantly focused on organizations, with start-ups and Venture Capital funds being of particular interest. While some studies explored policies, crowdfunding, and various specific aspects of the med-tech industry, a considerable number of articles covered a broader range of topics without a distinct subject classification.

The applied type of research method was also under investigation. Each article was categorized into one of three categories: qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods. Majority of the analysed articles, accounting for 60% (n = 49), utilized qualitative research methods. Followed closely by 25% (n = 20) of the articles employed a mixed methods approach. Only 15% (n = 12) of the articles relied solely on quantitative research methods. This distribution indicates a notable preference for qualitative and mixed methods in the research conducted on the topic. Upon closer examination of the research techniques employed, we found that the case study method was the most prevalent, accounting for 26% of the articles. Additionally, among the qualitative research tools utilized, we observed in-depth interviews, natural experiments, and questionnaires to be the most popular. Only a small fraction, accounting for 9% of the articles, referred to econometric models, while 15% employed basic statistical analysis.

While investigating the sample size, we could observe that case studies employed a single entity in more than one-third of papers, and between 2 to 7 entities in another one-third of papers. Econometric models tended to rely on larger sample sizes. For example, Clarke and Kitney [ 17 ] conducted an analysis of factors determining business success based on 146 medical device start-ups. Similarly Aleksina et al., [ 18 ] examined determinants of successful crowdfunding campaigns based on 109 projects in medical research. These examples demonstrate the range of research techniques employed in the analysed articles, with case study methods being the most prevalent and other qualitative methods and a smaller proportion utilizing econometric models and basic statistical analysis. The data sources varied, the dominant forms were interviews and databases, each accounting for 21% of the articles. Authors own experiences (6%) and observations (2%) were also utilized, yet to lesser extent.

Based on these findings, we can conclude that the conducted research thus far has been predominantly reliant on limited data sources. This is often due to the challenging nature of studying start-ups, particularly within a specific sector such as MedTech. Consequently, the research samples tend to be small, making it impractical to utilize more advanced quantitative methods. The inherent complexities associated with studying start-ups, coupled with the specific focus on the med-tech industry, further contribute to the shrinking of the research sample size.

In order to conduct advanced bibliometric analysis Bibliometrix software was utilized, which enabled to identify such features as: word cloud analysis, thematic grouping or key research trends. The below presented figures (Figs ​ (Figs3 3 and ​ and4) 4 ) refer to tag cloud analysis conducted respectively for the keywords specified by the authors ( Fig 3 ) and based on abstract analysis ( Fig 4 ). Upon examining the main 30 terms derived from the authors’ keywords, we observed that the term ’Venture capital’ appeared most frequently, followed by ’innovation’ and ’start-up’ (as shown in Fig 3 ). Furthermore, we noted the inclusion of terms associated with the medical device industry and medical technology throughout the list.

However, the analysis of abstracts indicates different results. The two most common two-word phrases based on abstract analysis were ’medical device,’ ranking first with a frequency of 38, and the plural form ’medical devices,’ ranking third with a frequency of 20. Following closely were terms such as ’health care’ and ’venture capital,’ both with a frequency of 21. ’Start-ups’ occupied the sixth position with a frequency of 10.

By examining both perspectives, we may gain a more comprehensive understanding of the research landscape, uncovering the authors’ intended focus of research that is reflected in provided key words as well as the central concepts that emerge from the actual content of the articles mirrored in the abstracts.

The analysis demonstrates that the field of MedTech industry can be examined from two dominant viewpoints: the venture capital perspective and start-ups perspective. In both perspectives the term ‘Innovation ’ is closely related. When examining terms related to specific innovation in healthcare, the focus is given on medical devices, e-health, and drug development. Yet, the most commonly encountered term is medical device. Among commonly used terms the concept of crowdfunding was also present. However, the majority of articles related to "medical crowdfunding" were excluded during the initial and subsequent screening phases due to inconsistencies in their context. These articles predominantly focused on crowdfunding campaigns with a patient-oriented approach, whereas the presented review focuses on articles referring to crowdfunding campaigns that serve as a means of financing new medical solutions.

Further, utilising Bibliometrix software we were able to gain insight into the development of "trend topics" over the years of analysis using authors’ keywords ( Fig 5 ). It is noteworthy that certain topics, such as open innovation and internationalization , have not yet captured the interest of researchers. Conversely, topics like innovation and start-ups have experienced a growing attraction, indicating their increasing significance. Additionally, one topic that has consistently remained present in research is venture capital .

Utilizing Bibliometrix, we have analysed the coupling between titles and identified five distinct topic clusters. We used the global citation scores to measure the impact of each cluster. It is important to note that this analysis specifically focused on unigrams, which are single-word units of analysis. Table 3 and Fig 6 summaries the cluster analysis. We may observe that Cluster 2 has the highest centrality score, followed by Cluster 3. This suggests that Cluster 2 and Cluster 3 are relatively more central and influential within the network compared to the other clusters. Considering the impact (last column), Cluster 4 has the highest impact score of all, indicating that it has a relatively higher level of impact based on global citations. Cluster 1 follows, having a moderate level of impact.

A concise summary of each cluster is provided below. In the following sections, a comprehensive analysis of the articles within each cluster is presented, highlighting the key findings and research themes, where n represents the number of articles in a cluster followed by the percentage share of articles belonging to a cluster in all the analyzed articles.

Cluster1: Crowdfunding for medical research (n = 15; 18.99%)

The first cluster focuses on the role and impact of crowdfunding as a source of funding for health-related research projects. The articles examine the trends, importance, benefits, risks, and determinants of crowdfunding for biomedical R&D, as well as the alternative financial structures and models that can support biomedical innovation. The research questions also explore the impact of crowdfunding on portfolio risk, innovation translation, entrepreneurship skills, and healthcare systems.

Cluster 2: Innovation in medical technology (n = 23; 29.11%)

The second cluster examines the challenges and opportunities of innovation in the medical technology field. The articles explore various aspects of the innovation process, such as the usage and benefits of mHealth, the impact of demand-side shocks, the role of regulatory knowledge, the process of life science investment, and the framework of open innovation.

Cluster 3: Study on new product development (n = 17; 21.52%)

The third cluster analyses factors and strategies that influence the success of new product development in the pharmaceutical and medical device sectors. A range of associated topics are covered in example: networking activities, telehealth business frameworks, industry-academia collaboration in medical device development, commercialization, convergence of pharmaceutical and medical device sectors, techno-entrepreneurship and decision-making processes.

Cluster 4: Digital start-ups (n = 10; 12,66%)

The fourth cluster explores the potential and challenges of digital start-ups in healthcare. Included articles are devoted to understand the context of ventures emerging and operating in the healthcare and telemedicine sectors, including their development trajectory, connected health concepts, clinical robustness and claims, managerial experiences, quality management systems for medical device start-ups, and value proposition and support for biomedical start-ups.

Cluster 5: Venture capital industry (n = 14; 17.72%)

The last cluster cover a wide range of topics in the healthcare industry that is in the scope of interest of Venture Capital. This included venture capital investments, time to IPO for VC-backed companies, capital funding and adoption challenges for university spin-outs in biomaterials and medical devices, the probability of venture loans for start-ups in various sectors, and the influence of institutional logics on firms’ innovation search.

Cluster analysis

The following section provides a detailed description of the content of each of the clusters. This analysis aims to elucidate the key themes, findings, and implications of the research within each cluster, offering a comprehensive understanding of the current state and future directions in various areas of medical research and innovation. By examining these clusters, we can identify critical insights and trends that are shaping the landscape of medical technology, healthcare innovation, and funding mechanisms.

Cluster 1—Crowdfunding for medical research

Cluster 1 (Crowdfunding for medical research) is relatively homogeneous in respect to the discussed issues. The predominant focus is given to crowdfunding as a novel tool allowing collection of funds that are difficult to obtain though other means.

Authors indicate the unique and growing role of crowdfunding in the global health sector. Benazzouz et. al. [ 19 ] study on neglected tropical diseases reveals that although the number of crowdfunding campaigns in this area has been increasing since 2010, crowdfunding has not yet reached its full potential. They indicate the need to promote the crowdfunding ecosystem for research and development of treatments for these diseases. This statement is supported by Tóth et al. [ 20 ] research focusing on the potential of crowdfunding for funding research on incurable diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Crowdfunding is perceived as a promising mean to increase funding for the development of diagnostics and therapies and overall advancing medical research and development. Dal-Ré et al. [ 21 ] suggest future scenarios where crowdfunding could enable self-funded clinical trials in Spain. Yet, earlier efforts into education of both patients and researchers on the crowdfunding mechanisms is crucial in order to unlock its full potential.

Further, articles explored factors responsible for the success of crowdfunding campaigns, such as social media coverage, public engagement, testimonials and inputs of known NGO’s or disease characteristics [ 18 , 22 ]. Both potential benefits and risks of crowdfunding for health research are discussed. Expanding market participation, improving access to funding, fostering project accountability are elicited on the benefit side, yet inefficient priority setting, heightened financial risk, inconsistent regulatory policies, as well as fraud balance them on the risks side [ 23 ]. The discussed papers also investigate crowdfunding initiatives from the perspective of different types of medical research, for example therapies for rare diseases [ 21 ], diagnostics for neglected tropical diseases [ 19 ] non-invasive methods to visualize neuronal fibre tracts or securitization techniques for biomedical innovation [ 24 ].

A fraction of the studies included in the cluster indicates innovation culture, training programs, and collaborations as a need for advancing healthcare research and development. Young’s [ 25 ] findings emphasize the importance of developing an innovation culture within the healthcare system. This involves empowering multidisciplinary teams and reducing the time from invention to adoption of innovative solutions. By fostering an environment that embraces innovation, the healthcare sector can realize substantial benefits and drive economic growth. Whereas, Nearing et al. [ 26 ] research highlights the value of training programs like I-Corps™ in supporting biomedical researchers. These programs focus on developing business models based on customers’ needs, with the ultimate goal of accelerating research translation into practice. Finally, Germann et al. [ 27 ] explore different aspects of collaboration between universities and the pharmaceutical industry. Concluding that trust-building and effective translation of innovations into the value chain of pharmaceutical companies are the crucial phases for an effective collaborative process.

Fernandez et al. [ 28 ] examine a broader context of funding models for biomedical research. The authors propose financial engineering as an alternative approach, which involves employing techniques like securitization to raise larger amounts of capital. They also suggest that creating diversified portfolios and combining equity and debt financing, will lead to attract significant investments from institutional players.

In conclusion papers classified in cluster one suggest that crowdfunding can be a promising and feasible alternative source of capital for medical research, yet it also requires careful design and implementation to optimize and equitably improve public health outcomes [ 19 , 21 , 23 , 24 ]. In conclusion, papers in cluster one suggest that crowdfunding is a promising alternative source of capital for medical research, requiring careful design and implementation to optimize and equitably improve public health outcomes [ 23 ].

Cluster 2—Innovation in medical technology

Cluster 2 (Innovation in medical technology) focus on several interconnected themes, such as innovation, new technologies and commercialisation challenges. The research findings emphasized the importance of collaboration, innovation, effective management, and strategic considerations for the success of medical start-ups and the advancement of the medical device industry.

The literature agreed that commercialisation of medical technology requires a long development period and bears a high risk of failure for the ventures [ 29 ]. Thus a range of suggestions how to overcome those key challenges is proposed.

Kalcheva et al. [ 30 ] highlight the importance of collaboration between universities, industry, and government, arguing that the blend of different knowledge and expertise increases the chances of commercialization success Lottes et al. [ 31 ] add to the discussion by emphasising the need for collaboration and cooperation among clinicians, researchers, industry, and regulators for successful translation of innovation into medical products, thus indicating the communication between stakeholders as the critical factor. Wagrell and Baraldi [ 32 ] and Onodera and Sengoku [ 33 ] provided illustration to the above statements by pointing out the significant influence of new entries and start-ups in shaping the mHealth industry through expertise in information and communication technology.

Considering identified factors contributing to success and failure of commercialisation, Wagrell and Baraldi [ 32 ] pointed out the regulatory barriers, complex decision-making processes, and customer-related challenges for start-ups. Effective management of knowledge flow, integration of regulatory requirements and addressing unmet needs are elicit as key success factors of medical device start-ups by Wan and Quan [ 34 ]. The factor list is enriched by Ren and Wu [ 35 ] who indicated the importance of environmental friendliness and effective communication in fundraising success in the medical products industry. Challenges in forming collaboration networks were in scope of interests of Moazzez et al. [ 36 ], who also provided models and strategies for network formation.

Finance and investment strategies are also discussed. Keppler et al. [ 37 ] described new investment criteria developed by the Venture Capitals for assessing the medical technology sector. The entrepreneurial environment created for medical device and biotech companies through leveraging resources was discussed by Hafer et al. [ 29 ]. Whereas, Alexander et al. [ 38 ] identified technology clusters with growth prospects in medical imaging and explores their implications.

Another sub-theme, that could be identified refers to the role of Open Innovation (OI) within the medical technology industry. OI had been indicated as an efficient strategy to obtain outside knowledge and thus enhance ones capabilities, or share unused knowledge either for free or fee. The identified papers focus on OI practices, OI drivers and OI barriers utilizing case studies as illustrations [ 34 , 39 ].

Cluster 3—Study on new product development

Papers in this cluster focus on product development in Med-Tech, specifically drivers for innovation, medical device development and commercialization, and capital investment.

In the realm of Drivers for innovation Cummings et. al. [ 40 ] highlight the importance of financial support and strategic partnerships. Whereas Laurell [ 41 ] brought attention to the significance of local network ties in the development of innovative products and the establishment of companies during early development phases. The study underscored the role of key individuals within the local network in fostering innovation and driving the growth of med-tech ventures. Also Kikuchi (2021) reveals that companies with high network centrality in alliances are more competitive and likely to develop products, underscoring the importance of strategic alliances. Building on this, Amano-Ito [ 42 ] shed light on the importance of industry-academia collaborations in the medical device field. The study emphasized the need for interventions by collaboration coordinators to ensure successful collaborations, as failures often arise from a lack of understanding of marketing and technical needs. Moreover, Hasche and Linton [ 43 ] pointed out that forming relationships and a strong network may help start-ups to overcome the liability of newness and smallness common for early stage of development.

Several observations had been made in reference to the Medical Device Development and Commercialization aspects. Bhaskaran [ 44 ] explores optimal product introduction strategies, arguing that start-ups may benefit from delaying launches while established firms should accelerate high-quality product launches. Velayati [ 45 ] emphasized the critical need for formulating a telehealth business framework that facilitates commercialization and ensures long-term sustainability in a competitive market. Identifying key components and critical factors for developing such a framework becomes essential for med-tech companies to thrive. Rose [ 46 ] highlighted the positive impact of programs like the Drug and Device Advisory Committee (DDAC) on the commercialization metrics of medical product investigators. The formalized partnerships between preclinical consulting and technology transfer programs enhance development and regulatory vetting, driving the translation of discoveries into tangible medical products.

Considering the discussion on Capital Investment and Innovation Influence, issues reflecting the strategies and methods applied by the stakeholder to assess the risks and business opportunities related to the new ventures are discussed. Lehoux et. al [ 47 ] examine capital investors’ decision-making processes in health technology ventures, focusing on how they assess, build, protect, and monetize value, thereby shaping innovation. On the other hand DiLorenzo [ 48 ] proposes a new metric–social return on investment–that may be utilised while assessing new ventures.

In conclusion, studies collected within this cluster contribute to a better understanding of the wide range of processes undergoing in the area of innovation and commercialization of medical devices within the industry.

Cluster 4—Digital start-ups

Papers in this cluster, titled "Digital Start-ups," focus on digital health innovation and start-ups. We identified three thematic groups: technological convergence, clinical robustness and public claims, and experiences of start-up managers.

The first theme covers research discussing the notion of technological convergence. Both, Livi and Jeannerat [ 49 ] and Chen et al. [ 50 ] provided evidence and indicate the tendency of technological convergence in the industry. They emphasize the need for continuous innovation and adaptation to stay ahead in the medical field, which can be achieved by combination a strong demand for innovation paired with continuous patenting. Observations made by Saarela et al. [ 15 ] indicated that market behaviour as well as the innovation strategies undertaken by companies differ depending on their size. The small companies are perceived to create more new to market products, yet the middle and large size companies specialise in spreading the innovations already known to market.

Although, the digital health sector experiences a significant growth, the clinical validation of products remains underdeveloped, which is discussed within the second leading theme. The evidence provided by Day et al. [ 51 ] indicated that many of digital health companies have a low level of clinical robustness and do not make many clinical claims measured by regulatory filings, clinical trials or public data shared on line. Yet, authors suggested that investing in greater clinical validation efforts can benefit both companies and customers, ensuring the credibility and reliability of digital health solutions. Ferguson [ 52 ] pointed out in order to successfully commercialise novel basic and clinical research into market products laboratories and universities need to seek a corporate partner or licensees.

The third theme focuses on the experiences of start-up managers. Saarela et al. [ 13 ] use a stage framework to identify the challenges faced by start-up managers, providing insights into the start-up growth stage in digital health. The traditional model of territorial innovation is challenged, with Swiss experience showing that med-tech companies are often shaped by multinational corporate venture strategies, classifying many as ’born to be sold’ [ 49 ] In contrary, the lack of quality management strategies and issues related to challenges of growth management are key factors hindering development of digital health start -ups [ 53 ].

In conclusion, research classified under this cluster shed light on the current state of digital health innovation and emphasizes the importance of continuous innovation, clinical validation, and understanding the unique challenges faced by start-ups in this dynamic industry. Despite the wide range of issues discussed the literature indicates that terms such as medical informatics, e-health, telemedicine or m-health, which are traditionally associated with digital health remain blurred and require further systematisation [ 50 ]. Moreover, the majority of the presented results derive from qualitative research and is based on either single, or multiple case studies.

Cluster 5—Venture capital industry

Cluster 5 contains research focusing both on venture capital and corporate venture capital in the context of med-tech industry. Studies in this cluster highlight various aspects of the healthcare innovation ecosystem, including venture financing, institutional factors, technological innovations, industry-specific challenges, and ecosystem development.

In terms of venture financing, researchers have explored various factors influencing the financing decisions of healthcare startups. Khanin et al. [ 54 ] study reveals that higher patent counts, as an indicator of national system of innovation advancement, are negatively associated with the likelihood of initial public offerings (IPOs) for VC-backed foreign portfolio companies. This finding suggests that a greater emphasis on patent generation may not necessarily translate into successful IPOs in the healthcare industry. Another aspect of venture financing is the use of venture loans by startups. Lehnertz’ et. al. [ 55 ] research showed that venture loans are more likely for mature start-ups with strongly committed existing investors. These loans are particularly common in the medical, health, and life science industry, where clear milestones provide favourable conditions for venture capital investments. This finding highlights the importance of investor commitment and the stage of start-up development in securing venture loans. While analysing Institutional Factors and Partnerships, Pahnke et al. [ 16 ] research explored how the institutional logics of funding partners influence the innovation efforts of young firms. The study revealed that ties with specific types of funding partners lead to significant differences in innovation outcomes, even when partners provide relevant resources, selectivity, and incentives for innovation. This highlighted the importance of considering the alignment of institutional logics when forming partnerships in the healthcare industry. Those findings are supported by Pei and Dang [ 56 ] study that examined the impact of venture capital network community structure on information dissemination in the medical health industry. The research showed that different types of network community structures can either promote or hinder the flow of information, ultimately affecting the sustainable development of the industry. Understanding these dynamics can help stakeholders shape network structures that foster effective knowledge exchange and collaboration. Whereas, Shakeri and Radfar [ 57 ] research focused on the performance of strategic alliances for technology commercialization in the biopharmaceutical industry. The study highlighted the determinants of alliance performance, including partner fit, alliance capabilities, social capital, and learning. It emphasized that opportunistic behaviour negatively affects alliance performance, while factors such as partner fit, conflict management, trust, and social capital positively influence learning and, consequently, alliance outcomes.

Technological innovations are also crucial. Smith and Shah [ 58 ] research demonstrated that established firms derive greater innovation-related benefits by incorporating user knowledge in the development of new technologies and products. This highlights the importance of user-driven innovation approaches in the healthcare industry. Levin and Behar-Cohen [ 59 ] study reveals disruptions in the flow of information in the pharmaceutical industry due to different goals among stakeholders. This finding suggests the need for improved communication and collaboration among stakeholders to enhance the reproducibility of academic laboratory results and promote innovation in the pharmaceutical sector.

The impact of Industry 4.0 technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics (BDA), blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and cloud computing, on the healthcare industry was discussed by Paul et. al. [ 60 ]. The study highlighted the transformative potential of these technologies and their applications, challenges, and overall impact on shaping the future of healthcare.

Specific industry challenges include the adoption issues faced by university spin-outs in biomaterials and medical devices [ 61 ]. The research suggests that there may be an overemphasis on early-stage support, while more mature companies in this sector lack unified regulatory frameworks and policies for the procurement of healthcare innovations. Addressing these challenges can foster the growth and success of biomaterials and medical device companies [ 61 ]. Lehoux et al. [ 62 ] work explores the evolution methods of health technology spin-offs, providing insights into this specific industry context. Understanding the trajectory of health technology spin-offs can help stakeholders better navigate the landscape and develop effective strategies for innovation and commercialization.

The last theme—ecosystem development and funding—encompasses studies that examine the broader environment and support mechanisms for healthcare innovation. DiLorenzo [ 48 ] emphasized the importance of factoring in the societal return on investment (sROI) in decision-making for neurotechnology and therapeutic technologies. By considering the broader societal impact, policymakers and investors can prioritize technologies that deliver the greatest benefit to patients and society. Williams and Walch [ 63 ] study highlighted the lack of available financial capital, particularly venture capital, as a major hindrance to ecosystem development, especially in Austrian regions. It underscores the critical role of venture capital in fostering biopharmaceutical innovation ecosystems. Increased government funding, including public grants, is essential for areas lacking venture capital to foster innovation and support the growth of biopharmaceutical companies.

In conclusion, the studies presented in these thematic categories contribute to the insights into the field of healthcare innovation. They offer a comprehensive understanding of venture financing and investment, the role of institutional factors and partnerships, the impact of technological innovations, the challenges and opportunities in specific industry sectors, and the importance of ecosystem development and funding. By addressing various industry specific aspects, stakeholders can make informed decisions, foster collaboration, and drive innovation to enhance healthcare delivery and outcomes.

Research gaps based on the clusters analyses

A scoping literature review was conducted to identify underexplored areas within the MedTech field and to formulate critical questions for future research. Table 4 presents research questions inspired by previous studies, each highlighting specific research gaps that need to be addressed for a better understanding of the MedTech industry. These questions aim to guide future research efforts, ensuring they build upon the existing knowledge base and address unresolved critical issues.

To summarize, in Cluster 1 (Crowdfunding for Medical Research) the future research directions should focus on refining mapping and quantification methods, evaluating the long-term impact of crowdfunding on research outcomes, and examining the broader implications of crowdfunding for the scientific community.

Cluster 2 (Innovation in Medical Technology) suggests to further explore methods for evaluating the value and adoption rates of emerging technologies, identify strategies to overcome challenges in collaboration networks, and assess the role of public actors in fostering innovation across different industries.

Cluster 3 (Study on New Product Development) indicates the need to develop effective product launch strategies, understanding the dynamics of drug-device convergence, and exploring decision-making processes in innovation-driven ventures.

Cluster 4 (Digital Start-ups) advocates for evaluating the outcomes and benefits of telehealth and ICT solutions, understanding the dynamics of co-creation practices in different sectors, and identifying effective strategies for managing growth and networks in digital start-ups.

Finally, Cluster 5 (Venture Capital Industry) recommends to focus on assessing the impact of patents on venture lending decisions, developing strategies for cost-effective innovation while ensuring patient safety, and exploring alternative outcome variables and knowledge sources to provide a comprehensive understanding of the benefits in the venture capital industry.

The scoping review on MedTech start-ups presents a multifaceted exploration of the current research landscape, highlighting significant insights and identifying critical gaps in the literature. Despite the consensus among scholars on the importance of this research area, the analysis described in the article reveals a limited number of publications. However, there is a noticeable increase in interest and a growing trend in the number of studies being published on the topic.

The review identified several major limitations in the existing research. One of the most striking findings is the geographic concentration of research, with a significant portion of studies centered in specific countries, notably the United States. This concentration highlights a gap in the literature regarding the experiences and developments in other regions, suggesting a need for more inclusive research that encompasses a broader range of healthcare contexts and markets globally. Expanding the geographic scope of research could provide a more comprehensive understanding of the global MedTech landscape and uncover region-specific insights that could inform more tailored and effective innovation strategies.

Methodologically, the review found that most studies employ qualitative approaches, such as case studies and in-depth interviews. Consequently, the research samples were typically small, limiting the scope and generalizability of the findings. Only a few studies involved larger samples (above 100) and utilized advanced econometric models. While qualitative methods provide rich, contextual insights into the MedTech ecosystem, the reliance on small sample sizes and qualitative data points to a need for more large-scale quantitative research. Despite the challenging nature of studying start-ups, particularly within a specific sector such as MedTech, there is potential for enriching the current qualitative research with more sophisticated quantitative research methods based on larger samples in future studies. Such research could enhance the generalizability of findings and offer more robust statistical analyses, thereby providing a clearer picture of trends and patterns within the industry.

The research revealed that the MedTech ecosystem is characterized by five predominant thematic clusters: crowdfunding for medical research, innovation in medical technology, new product development, digital start-ups, and the venture capital industry. Each cluster offers a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities within the MedTech field, underscoring the diversity of research interests and the complexity of the ecosystem.

The commercialization of medical technologies emerged as a significant challenge, with regulatory barriers, complex decision-making processes, and customer-related issues frequently cited as obstacles. Effective collaboration among stakeholders—including universities, industry players, and government bodies—is essential for overcoming these hurdles. By fostering robust collaboration networks and integrating regulatory requirements early in the development process, MedTech start-ups and established firms alike can enhance their chances of successful innovation and commercialization.

The role of crowdfunding and venture capital in supporting medical research and innovation was another critical area of focus. Crowdfunding is increasingly seen as a promising alternative funding source, particularly for early-stage projects that may struggle to attract traditional investment. However, the high risks associated with medical innovation and the stringent regulatory environment pose significant challenges for start-ups seeking to bring new technologies to market. Venture capital remains a crucial driver of innovation, with significant interest in cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence and robotics. To mitigate risks and enhance the success rate of funded projects, investors should consider strategies that include diverse portfolios and strong support for regulatory compliance.

The implications of these findings for various stakeholders are profound. For industry practitioners, it is essential to emphasize robust collaboration among different stakeholders, including researchers, healthcare providers, and regulatory bodies. Early integration of regulatory requirements into the development process and a keen focus on addressing customer needs are crucial for the successful commercialization of medical products. Investors, including venture capitalists and crowdfunding platforms, should develop strategies that mitigate the high risks associated with medical innovation. This involves supporting projects that have clear regulatory pathways and demonstrating strong potential for market success, ensuring that investments are both secure and impactful in advancing healthcare technology.

Future research should aim to address the identified gaps through more inclusive, quantitative, and longitudinal studies. Expanding research to underrepresented regions, employing advanced statistical techniques, and tracking long-term outcomes are essential steps towards a more comprehensive understanding of the MedTech ecosystem. Interdisciplinary approaches that incorporate perspectives from economics, sociology, and business could also enrich the field, providing a more holistic view of the challenges and opportunities in MedTech innovation. Additionally, the research questions presented in the article for each cluster can be utilized in future studies.

The presented review has its limitations. Although data was integrated from three distinct databases, certain bibliometric information, such as details on research funding sources, remained inaccessible. Additionally, the study did not include grey literature, such as reports and industry publications, which could offer valuable insights into the latest developments within the medical start-up landscape.

We assume there might be a delay between new industry trends and the corresponding academic research. This lag can be attributed to the research cycle, which requires time for identifying new phenomena, collecting data, analyzing it, and publishing the results. Consequently, our article can serve as a foundation for future studies that compare academic literature with grey literature. While we identified research topics in academic studies, it would be interesting to compare them with the themes found in grey literature. This comparison could enhance our understanding of the MedTech industry and suggest directions for future research.

In conclusion, the scoping review offers a detailed map of the current research landscape on MedTech start-ups, highlighting significant themes, challenges, and gaps. Addressing these gaps through more inclusive, quantitative, and interdisciplinary research can significantly advance the field, informing policy, practice, and investment strategies. By fostering collaboration and leveraging emerging technologies, the MedTech industry has the potential to drive innovations that enhance healthcare outcomes globally.

Supporting information

Funding statement.

The author(s) received no specific funding for this work.

Data Availability