Medical outshopping intent: profiling the health care consumer.

The health care industry has been exposed to a tremendous upheaval in the last decade. The traditional practices have given way to new behaviors and structures. This is especially true for community hospitals that have long provided the major portion of health care services in their markets. Their traditional local service area, once thought of as fairly much their sole domain, is being redefined. Consumers are becoming more aware of alternative health delivery options, thus choosing to go outside of their local trading area for these alternatives. This study investigates consumer characteristics and influences driving this behavior. Implications for hospital marketing practices are discussed.