Connected care in a fragmented world: lessons from rural health care.

Abstract

This paper uses the phenomenon of very high satisfaction with remote rural health services in Scotland as a trigger for exploring what consumers want and like in health service utilisation - and why. It draws on the business literature in customer services marketing and economic sociology to illuminate why long-term associations between consumers and providers in health care are important and beneficial. In doing so, it highlights wider lessons about the experience of good health care to be learned from the satisfaction expressed by rural residents and suggests, as health services become increasingly fragmented, the relevance of maintaining a connected experience for patients.