ส่วนประสมการตลาดบริการที่มีผลต่อการเลือกใช้บริการผู้ป่วยนอกโรงพยาบาลเอกชนในจังหวัดเชียงใหม่

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to study the service marketing mix affecting outpatient service selection at private hospitals in Chiang Mai Province by collecting data using questionnaire. The population in this study were Thai people who had used outpatient services at nine private hospitals with 100 beds or more in Chiang Mai Province, namely Chiang Mai Medical Center Hospital, Theppanya Hospital, Chiang Mai Klaimor Hospital, Central Chiang Mai Memorial Hospital, Bangkok Hospital Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai Rajavej Hospital, Lanna Hospital, Chiang Mai Ram Hospital, and McCormick Hospital within a period of not more than 6 months with unknown the population. Therefore, in this study, the data were collected at a local level, and a sample size of 450 cases. Samples were collected on 50 cases per hospital by using convenience sampling method by distributing questionnaires at the mentioned hospitals. The data were analyzed with descriptive statistics consisting of frequency, percentage, and mean before using inferential statistics to analyze the difference in the service marketing mix affecting outpatient service selection at private hospitals in Chiang Mai Province. These samples were classified by respondent groups in the aspects of age, income, using One-Way ANOVA reference statistics to test the hypothesis and to test the differences in sub-factor levels individually by Scheffe's method, for the payment method, using the reference t-test to test the hypothesis. The results of the study revealed that most of the respondents were female, aged 21-30 years old and 31-40 years old, single status, working as employees of private companies, graduated with a bachelor's degree with a monthly family income of 30,001-50,000 baht. Most of them used medical welfare benefits through health insurance and they were responsible for most of the medical expenses (self-paying). Consumer behavior in Chiang Mai in choosing private hospital outpatient services demonstrated that most of the respondents used outpatient services in private hospitals once a year during the days when they were to receive services with no specific day. The most time to receive services was according to the doctor's appointment/check-up schedule. The reason for choosing the service was when the body started to have abnormalities such as fever, pain in various areas, cough, runny nose, etc. The respondents paid cash and deducted expenses from medical welfare benefits by paying only the excessive amount and the person or source of information that influenced the choice of service was family member. In this study, private hospital outpatient services were used to treat common diseases and the private hospital in Chiang Mai that most of the respondents visited was Lanna Hospital. The main reason for choosing the service was the short distance from their residences. After using the service, the level of satisfaction was high. The service marketing mix affecting the selection of outpatient services in private hospitals in Chiang Mai Province found that all factors affected the selection of services at a high level. The first 3 factors with the highest mean were location and service channels, process, and personnel, respectively. In terms of product and service factors, the top 3 sub-factors with the highest mean were specialized medical examination services, followed by comprehensive treatment services, and modern and standard equipment, respectively. In an aspect of price, the top 3 sub-factors with the highest mean were the price in insurance coverage/welfare, followed by the cost of providing services appropriate to the quality of service, and ability to pay for medical expenses by credit card or bank transfer, respectively. The top 3 sub-factors with the highest mean for place and service channel factors were service locations located in areas convenient for traveling, followed by 24-hour service, and convenience in contacting information, respectively. For marketing promotion factor, the top 3 sub-factors with the highest mean were reception staff giving advice and answering questions in using the service, followed by the hospital's website or online media channels that could view information about providing services and others, and documents about knowledge and practice in various fields for consultation and advice, respectively. The top 3 sub-factors regarding the process with the highest mean were the accuracy of treatment, e.g. appropriate medication for the disease, following by the process of providing services that were not complicated, and provided information about side effects or complications that might arise from treatment, respectively. Personnel factor showed that the top 3 sub-factors with the highest mean were expertise in treatment and diagnosis, following by doctors and nurses giving advice and explaining the treatment process in detail and clear, and experienced and famous doctors, respectively. The top 3 sub-factors regarding the physical evidence with the highest mean were adequate facilities and utilities such as toilets, the place to sit, and the elevator, following by cleanliness such as the bathroom, treatment room, waiting area to see a doctor, etc., and a place to feel safe when receiving services during the COVID situation, respectively. The results of the hypothesis test revealed that respondents with different ages, different income, and different types of payment have given importance to different service marketing mix factors in every aspect.