Journal / Research
Health consumers in search of authentic experiences
In the growing value-based era of healthcare, patients are looking for something that the system rarely delivers: the experience of being treated as a consumer.
The empowered health consumer
PwC's research into the New Health Economy found that more consumers want to take active control of their own health. That shift is structural, not generational. Better access to information, wearable devices, direct-to-consumer testing — the tools for self-management are multiplying.
The implication for healthcare providers and digital health companies is significant. Users are not passive recipients of care. They are making choices — about which services to use, which advice to follow, which apps to trust. They are applying consumer logic to healthcare decisions.
What authentic means here
Authentic in this context means that the experience matches the claim. If a healthcare service positions itself as patient-centred, the actual experience of using it should feel that way. If a digital health product claims to improve wellbeing, it should demonstrably do so.
The gap between positioning and experience is where trust erodes. And in healthcare, trust is not just a commercial asset — it is clinically relevant. People who do not trust a service use it less, follow its guidance less, and benefit from it less.
The product implication
For product teams building in the health space, this creates a clear mandate:
- Don't overclaim. The short-term gain from inflated positioning is outweighed by the long-term cost of the trust deficit it creates.
- Design for the whole journey. The moment someone feels treated like a number — in an onboarding flow, a support interaction, a notification — the illusion of consumer experience breaks.
- Measure experience, not just outcomes. Clinical efficacy matters. So does whether people actually feel good about using the product. Both are real.
The health consumer is already here. The question is whether the services they use are ready to meet them. Find the whole article here: https://www.healthpopuli.com/2015/08/19/health-consumers-in-search-of-authentic-consumer-experiences/
