Healthcare Administration Publications
Marketing communications in health and medicine: perspectives from Willis-Knighton Health System
Communications prowess is a key ingredient of productive healthcare delivery pursuits, with associated successes clearly positioning health and medical establishments for growth and prosperity. Many conveyance...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):817
Published on: 15 September 2020
Advertising in health and medicine: using mass media to communicate with patients
Advertising—a marketing communications method involving the paid use of mass media to deliver messages to desired audiences—represents one of the most common and effective avenues for engaging current and pros...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):818
Published on: Published on: 15 September 2020
Personal selling in health and medicine: using sales agents to engage audiences
Personal selling—the use of sales agents to personally deliver messages to target audiences—is often not the first conveyance pathway that comes to mind when thinking about marketing communications in the heal...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):819
Published on: 15 September 2020
Sales promotion in health and medicine: using incentives to stimulate patient interest and attention
Sales promotion—the use of incentives to encourage patronage—is a staple of marketing communications in the health services industry. Sales promotion applications commonly used by health services organizations...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):820
Published on: 15 September 2020
Public relations—a marketing communications method involving the use of publicity and other unpaid promotional methods to deliver messages—historically has served as the communicative workhorse of the health s...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):821
Published on: 15 September 2020
Direct marketing—the delivery of messages via mail, the Internet, and similar routes directly to consumers—is used extensively by healthcare organizations to attract and inform current and prospective patients...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):822
Published on: 15 September 2020
When one thinks of opportunities to engage patients, the marketing communications mix often is the first thing that comes to mind. Its five components of advertising, personal selling, sales promotion, public ...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):823
Published on: 15 September 2020
Successful patient engagement pursuits naturally require healthcare providers to possess a detailed understanding of their target audiences, with one of the most important processes to comprehend being the man...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):824
Published on: 15 September 2020
Integrated marketing communications: a strategic priority in health and medicine
Healthcare establishments portray themselves to their patient populations using many communicative mechanisms. Perhaps the first avenues that come to mind are the outward conveyances of the marketing communica...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):825
Published on: 15 September 2020
Willis-Knighton Health System’s special supplement in BMC Health Services Research, “Marketing communications in health and medicine: perspectives from Willis-Knighton Health System,” focuses on advertising, publ...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2020 20(Suppl 1):826
Published on: 15 September 2020
Formulating productive marketing communications strategy: a major health system’s experience
Healthcare establishments serve as key community resources, bringing into locales a wealth of resources aimed at enhancing and improving health and wellness. Without effective communications, current and...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):926
Published on: 14 December 2018
Healthcare institutions deliver essential services that practically everyone needs at least periodically over the course of their lives. Hospital admissions, in particular, place patients in circumstances very...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):927
Published on: 14 December 2018
Target marketing in the health services industry: the value of journeying off the beaten path
Target marketing, a practice used to more effectively address the wants and needs of customers, involves three interrelated activities: market segmentation, targeting, and product positioning. The practice...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):923
Published on: 14 December 2018
Driving brand equity in health services organizations: the need for an expanded view of branding
Branding—the assignment of names, logos, slogans, and related elements of identity to institutions and their product offerings for the purpose of conveying desired images to target audiences—is of paramount...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):924
Published on: 14 December 2018
Given the importance of communicating effectively with current and prospective patients, healthcare institutions must direct considerable energies toward achieving associated excellence. Pursuits usually center...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):928
Published on: 14 December 2018
Modern marketing thought heavily emphasizes the need for healthcare providers to possess a customer orientation, placing patients at the focal point of attention within health and medical establishments. This ...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):929
Published on: 14 December 2018
Marketing arguably is the most critical administrative responsibility associated with the pursuit and realization of growth and prosperity, making prowess in the discipline essential for any healthcare institution...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2018 18(Suppl 3):922
Published on: 14 December 2018
Challenges abound for healthcare providers engaged in initiatives directed toward disadvantaged populations, with financial constraints representing one of the most prominent hardships. Society’s less fortunate...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 4):805
Published on: 13 December 2017
Tithing programs: pathways for enhancing and improving the health status of the underprivileged
While quick and easy access to healthcare services is a reality for some, others experience significant hardships, even for receipt of the most basic health and medical care and attention. To those who...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 4):806
Published on: 13 December 2017
Healthcare communications directed toward the disadvantaged have the potential to elevate the health status of these underprivileged and highly-challenged individuals. From conveying advice which encourages...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 4):787
Published on: 13 December 2017
The hub-and-spoke organization design revisited: a lifeline for rural hospitals
Characterized by declining populations, high poverty, reduced employment opportunities, and high numbers of uninsured residents, rural communities pose significant challenges for healthcare providers desirous...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 4):795
Published on: 13 December 2017
Health and medical providers dedicated to serving the poor face daunting challenges, with the most obvious one pertaining to the provision of services with little or no expectation of remuneration. This hardship...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 4):791
Published on: 13 December 2017
Adaptive reuse in the healthcare industry: repurposing abandoned buildings to serve medical missions
Adaptive reuse—the practice of identifying, acquiring, renovating, and placing back into service a building or similar structure for a purpose different than that for which it was originally designed—offers...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 1):451
Published on: 11 July 2017
Centers of excellence in healthcare institutions: what they are and how to assemble them
Centers of excellence—specialized programs within healthcare institutions which supply exceptionally high concentrations of expertise and related resources centered on particular medical areas and delivered in...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 1):425
Published on: 11 July 2017
The hub-and-spoke organization design: an avenue for serving patients well
The healthcare industry is characterized by intensive, never-ending change occurring on a multitude of fronts. Success in such tumultuous environments requires healthcare providers to be proficient in myriad a...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 1):457
Published on: 11 July 2017
Peering beyond the walls of healthcare institutions: a catalyst for innovation
Healthcare providers operate in a unique industry characterized by pursuit of perhaps the most noble of missions: the delivery of vital health and medical services to those in need. Distinguishing features...
James K. Elrod and John L. Fortenberry Jr.
BMC Health Services Research 2017 17(Suppl 1):402
Published on: 11 July 2017
