Zagat, the favorite foodie survey company that has become ubiquitous online, has moved its technology to a new area -- health care.
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield has announced that a partnership with Zagat that allows consumers to rate their physician experiences. Insurers and managed care companies have compiled physician and hospital metrics for years, and many web sites offering physician "report cards" have launched in the last few years, but the program links two brand name organizations in a new field.
The service will initially be available only in parts of Ohio, but with both companies having national partnerships, one can easily imagine the program spreading if successful.
The results can be a mixed bag, warns Consumer Help Web's George Bounacos. "We find that extreme emotions, either positive or negative, compel people to review or comment on goods and services," said the consumer advocate. "There is a danger inherent in crowd rating versus traditional market research that bias can move the results to consumers who feel strongly about a physician one way or another."
Bounacos advises that the ratings should be a part of a consumer's research and not serve as the only measure to determine whether someone should see a specific physician.
Labels: Blue Cross, customer satisfaction, medical, survey, Zagat
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