Service Guarantees Have a Place in Health Care
Authors: Leonard L. Berry
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2019)

Ideas and Opinions15 January 2019Service Guarantees Have a Place in Health CareLeonard L. Berry, PhD, MBALeonard L. Berry, PhD, MBATexas A&M University, College Station, Texas, and Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Cambridge, Massachusetts (L.L.B.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/M18-2412 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Many health systems prioritize enhancing patients' service experience in addition to improving clinical quality and safety. However, an effective strategy companies often use to improve service quality is all but ignored in health care. This strategy is known as a service guarantee, which is “…an explicit promise made by the service provider to (a) deliver a certain level of service to satisfy the customer and (b) remunerate the customer if the service is not sufficiently delivered” (1). Unlike a warranty, which involves replacing or repairing a manufactured product, a service guarantee focuses on the service as a performance. When a ...References1. Hogreve J, Gremler DD. Twenty years of service guarantee research: a synthesis. J Serv Res. 2009;11:322-43. CrossrefGoogle Scholar2. Lee K, Khan MA. Exploring the impacts of service guarantee strategy. Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing. 2012;29:133-46. CrossrefGoogle Scholar3. Kandampully J, Butler L. Service guarantees: a strategic mechanism to minimise customers' perceived risk in service organisations. Managing Service Quality: An International Journal. 2001;11:112-21. CrossrefGoogle Scholar4. Berry LL. On Great Service. New York: Free Pr; 1995. Google Scholar5. Zeithaml VA, Bitner MJ, Gremler DD. Services Marketing: Integrating Customer Focus Across the Firm. 7th ed. New York: Irwin/McGraw-Hill; 2018. Google Scholar6. Hart CW. The power of unconditional service guarantees. Harvard Business Review. 1988;66:54-62. Google Scholar7. Slotkin JR, Wendling CD, Erskine AR, Thomas DA. Why this health system offers refunds to dissatisfied patients. Harvard Business Review. 16 November 2016. Accessed at https://hbr.org/2016/11/why-this-hospital-offers-refunds-to-dissatisfied-patients on 15 August 2018. Google Scholar8. Burke GF. Geisinger's refund promise: where things stand after one year. NEJM Catalyst. 12 January 2017. Accessed at https://catalyst.nejm.org/geisinger-refund-promise-one-year on 15 August 2018. Google Scholar9. Berry LL. Discovering the Soul of Service. New York: Free Pr; 1999. Google Scholar10. Berry LL, Jacobson JO, Stuart B. Managing the clues in cancer care [Editorial]. J Oncol Pract. 2016;12:407-10. [PMID: 27006353] doi:10.1200/JOP.2016.011130 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, and Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Cambridge, Massachusetts (L.L.B.)Acknowledgment: The author thanks Dr. Greg F. Burke, Chief Patient Experience Officer, Geisinger Health, for providing information used in the Geisinger example.Disclosures: The author has disclosed no conflicts of interest. The form can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=M18-2412.Corresponding Author: Leonard L. Berry, PhD, MBA, Department of Marketing, Mays Business School, Texas A&M University, 4112 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843-4112; e-mail, [email protected]edu.Author Contributions: Conception and design: L.L. Berry.Drafting of the article: L.L. Berry.Critical revision of the article for important intellectual content: L.L. Berry.Final approval of the article: L.L. Berry.Administrative, technical, or logistic support: L.L. Berry.This article was published at Annals.org on 8 January 2019. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Metrics Cited byService guarantees in an e-commerce platform: proposition of a framework based on customers' expectations, negative experiences and behavioural responsesDeveloping Internet of Things-related ISO 10001 Hand Hygiene Privacy Codes in healthcareCustomer-perceived service wellbeing in a transformative framework: Research propositions in the area of health servicesThinking, feeling and coping by BoP healthcare consumers: policy-based intervention in an emerging marketOutcome Warranties 15 January 2019Volume 170, Issue 2Page: 116-117KeywordsCommunication in health careEmergency departmentHealth careHealth information technologyOutpatientsPatient advocacyPerceptionSafetySurgeonsSurgery ePublished: 8 January 2019 Issue Published: 15 January 2019 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2019 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...