Online medical consultation in China: Demand-side analysis of obese patients’ preferences and willingness-to-pay for online obesity consultations

Author:

Hu Yaolin1ORCID,Wang Jian23,Gu Yuanyuan4,Nicholas Stephen56ORCID,Maitland Elizabeth7,Zhou Jianbo1

Affiliation:

1. School of Economics, Peking University, Beijing, China

2. Dong Fureng Institute of Economic and Social Development, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

3. Center for Health Economics and Management, Economics and Management School, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China

4. Macquarie University Centre for the Health Economy, Macquarie Business School & Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia

5. Health Services Research and Workforce Innovation Centre, Newcastle Business School, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, Australia

6. Australian National Institute of Management and Commerce, Sydney, Australia

7. School of Management, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK

Abstract

Objective With obesity a major health concern and call on healthcare resources in China, we explored the preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) for obesity OMC, including the influencing factors behind WTP and preferences. Method We recruited 400 obese participants to undertake a discrete choice experiment (DCE) and the contingent value method (CVM) survey. We used CVM to measure obese participants’ WTP for one-click services (OCS) and used DCE to estimate obesity participants’ preferences and WTP for OMC with different attributes. Results Obese participants were willing to pay more than RMB80 on average for OCS, and more than 50% of participants had a WTP over RMB50 and 5% had a WTP over RMB300, reflecting the strong willingness of Chinese obese patients to pay for OMC. Educational background, income, ethnicity, previous OMC experience and accessibility to offline hospitals with different levels impacted WTP. The relative importance score of attributes in descending order was cost, doctors’ hospital level, doctors’ level, online waiting time, consultation time and consultation form. Obese patients preferred lower cost, doctors from higher-level hospitals, doctors with higher expertise levels, shorter waiting time and consultation duration, and telephone consultation were preferred. 30-min waiting time, 15-min consultation duration and telephone consultation were the most economically efficient set we found. Conclusion To maximize health resources, provincial tertiary and municipal hospitals face different paths to developing obesity OMC platforms. We encouraged young doctors to use OMC. OMC regulators should implement consumer protection policies to optimize OMC pricing and address potential ‘unfair’ pricing.

Publisher

SAGE Publications

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