Consumerism in health care – review of Polish and world literature

Abstract

Abstract Introduction. Consumerism refers to people who adopt attitudes characterised by unnecessary consumption and excessive accumulation of material goods, which are the most important, essential in life, and are a determinant of quality. Consumerism has brought noticeable positive effects in the area of health services due to the observance of patients’ rights, the provision of ever higher quality medical services, allowing the patient to decide on certain issues concerning their life and health, and the choice of doctor or medical facility. Aim. The aim of the work was to analyze the scientific literature on consumerism in health care. Method. Scopus, PubMed databases and Google Scholar were searched in accordance with the guidelines of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta Analyzes (PRISMA 2020).Ultimately, 14 articles that met the inclusion criteria were included for detailed analysis. Results. Comprehensive, high-quality nursing care in a hospital, upgrading the skills of health care professionals and appropriate behaviour of medical staff contribute to the positive assessment of a particular facility, and thus attract other customers (patients) to use medical services.