3 Levels of the Hospital Product

Every business organization produces goods and/or services to customers who are willing and able to purchase them. This good/service is referred to as a product. The hospital is no different. It also produces services to sick people. There are three levels or dimensions of the hospital product.

• —  Core product

This is the fundamental or basic service that a patient is really buying(good health). This product (Good health) is encapsulated in the form of consultation, investigations, and drugs. The quality of your service is a major determinant of the level of patient patronage that you will receive. For example, patients who have experienced better service elsewhere are unlikely to be satisfied if your services are below their expectations. The least they will accept from you is the level of service they have been used to. 

The quality of your core product is actually determined by the level of expertise or skills in your hospital. This can also be referred to as your core competence. If you are very skilled in general surgery, you will definitely give better surgical services than another doctor who is less skilled (all other things being equal). 

To develop your core product, you must develop yourself and your employees through training and re-training. A serious physician for example, will always be willing to learn new and better methods of treating patients. 

• —  Augmented product:

 It is not enough to be a very skilled practitioner. To attract and retain patients, you need much more than just core competence. This is where augmented product comes in. An augmented product goes beyond the level of the core product to meet and exceed customer expectation. For instance, the furnishing in the wards, the comfort and luxury of your facilities, the availability of basic utilities all play a part in augmenting your core competence. 

There are several facilities or extra features you can add to your core product to enhance your services. These include a decent room, a reception hall with health magazines/ fresh flowers/satellite TV, smartly dressed and polite staff, air conditioning e.t.c. This level of service can meet and exceed customer’s expectations. Achieving the level of the augmented product will retain customers in the short and medium term.

• —  Excellent product: 

This is a product that consistently delivers the “WOW” factor! This level sets your hospital apart from other hospitals placing you in a class of your own. It is like flying first class when others are flying economy.

An excellent hospital product builds on the level of the core and augmented products to deliver a high level of skills and world class diagnostic facilities. In this case, there is a consistent and constant strive to exceed customers’ expectations.
This can be achieved through innovation and continuous improvement. When you deliver excellent products, you are on your way to being the industry leader.