Reconsidering Patient Value to Create Better Healthcare

Abstract

Healthcare can be seen as a value shop, in which solutions to health problems are offered in exchange for valuable contributions. However, the full value exchange between the healthcare provider and the patient is not always apparent. The value shop concept runs the risk of considering only what the patient pays (i.e., money, either paid by the patient or reimbursed by the government) while ignoring another important value, data. Yet without this data, the patient’s problem cannot be solved. This article offers a new paradigm in which a health provider can deliver better value by integrating all dimensions of the provider’s and patient’s value.