Applying SERVQUAL with API for medical tourists in Medellin

【Abstract】This research paper aims to conduct a data analysis using a modified servqual for medical tourist perceptions considering the city of Medellin as a medical destination. Even though, medical tourism encompasses a larger rank of industries, such as transportation or hospitality, the scope was addressed only for medical interventions; which is considered the most important stage, according to medical tourist expectations. The idea is to provide the health units taken for the survey with a better understanding of this market; help them match supply to the needs, wishes and attitudes of their foreign patients and draw up improved plans for developing their potential.A questionnaire has been developed based on a literature review of research in service quality and based on responses of the pilot survey among patients attended in 4 different hospitals in the city. To examine the dimensionality of the modified SERVQUAL scale, the 15 expectation items and 15 perception items were factor analyzed separately using principal api model. Positive and significant relationships among healthcare service quality and patient satisfaction have been found in a major percentage.The main intention is to contribute to research on healthcare services by building a comprehensive instrument of medical tourist perceived healthcare quality in the city of Medellin. The instrument would enable medical tourists to provide feedback to hospitals regarding the quality of healthcare received by them. Hospitals could use this feedback to analyze their performance, gauge patient satisfaction and benchmark their performance against competitive hospitals.

【Key words】Service quality；Servqual；Health care centers；Ｐatients’ satisfaction

0.Introduction

Medical tourism is a relatively new concept used to describe the rapidly-growing practice of traveling across international borders to obtain healthcare. Over 45 countries have identified medical tourism as a national industry and Colombia is being working harder to be identified as one of the popular medical travel destinations globally and in the region due to its low cost, efficient and qualified staff and medical facilities that are on par with western standards.

Because of the importance of this business, Colombia’s healthcare service providers and government agencies are required from time to time to examine service quality in order to keep it lucrative and increase the number of their customers. The city of medellin is highly recognized in Colombia and Latin America for providing world class health services and for having featured hospitals, clinics and high level professionals of medicine and dentistry, many with specialized training in the best universities of North America. It is also a world pioneer in transplantation and surgical medical procedures of high complexity, home of prominent research groups recognized worldwide and center of attention of international patients.