Shouldice Hospital

15 Pages 3644 Words

SHOULDICE HOSPITAL¡¦S STRATEGY

The key to Shouldice Hospital¡¦s performance is its tightly focused service strategy. Shouldice has concentrated its market of sick people according to their complaints and then narrowed down to only one segment that is inexpensive to serve. Shouldice hospital accepts patients with only external types of abdominal hernias. It does not treat patients with internal hernias, such as hiatus or patients with any kind of medical risk. The benefits of a focused operation are readily demonstrated at Shouldice Hospital, whose very unusual product is a ¡§hernia vacation.¡¨ Patients are admitted to a mansion like hospital in a beautiful setting outside Toronto. Every detail of the hospital¡¦s operations is focused on providing high-quality hernia care in a congenial, restful atmosphere. Patients mingle, mix, and generally relax, enjoying the experience so much that the annual reunion dinner is oversubscribed.
SHOULDICE HOSPITAL¡¦S COMPETITIVE DIMENISIONS
Competitive dimensions help to position the hospital in the market as the most cost effective and efficient organization to attract more customers. Shouldice Hospital in Canada focuses on hernia operations for otherwise healthy patients. The founder developed and standardized a repeatable surgical procedure that requires only local anesthesia and encourages patient movement, participation, and socialization through excellent ambulatory care provided in a non-hospital-like environment. The Shouldice process provides very high quality service at relatively low cost. It is, however, very inflexible and will not accept patients who have any risk factors and certainly does not treat patients for anything other than hernias. In detail, a few major competitive dimensions that form the competitive position of Shouldice hospital are as follows:
ľ Cost: Shouldice Hospital is known for its efficient and inexpensive services. The average cost for a typical ...