The Digital Patient – Journey into Hospital Selection

Search and mobile web is driving patients’ hospital/medical searches. Here’s how.

This infographic, produced by Web Direxion in 2012, drew a map from the results of a survey given to over 500 hospital researchers. This study, executed in conjunction with Google and Compete, provides timely, and relevant take-aways for hospital administrators today in 2015, as it did at the date of it’s release.

Among findings of note, the study found these key points:

  • 84% of patients use both online and offline sources for hospital research.
  • Search drives nearly 3x as many visitors to hospital sites compared to non-search visitors.
  • Patients primarily search on symptoms and condition terms towards the moment of conversion.
  • 44% of patients who research hospitals on a mobile device scheduled an appointment.

According to Google, before making an appointment, “patients put time and consideration into their research, with 48% taking over 2 weeks to research before booking, and 61% visiting 2+ hospital websites before converting.”

A snapshot into the wellness journey

Below is a comprehensive summary of the study. You can access the study in its entirety by clicking here.

infographic - hospital selection in the digital age 2015-2020 Source: Frangos, Web Direxion 2012

“Eight out of ten people use the internet to research health issues, making it the third most popular online activity,” according to a recent pew study that surveyed 3,014 adults living in the United States. And the numbers of people will keep growing.

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