Biomaterial Database

The medical profession and changing attitudes towards advertising and competition. 1991

J D Bell, and M T Fay

Department of Marketing, University of Otago, Dunedin.

This paper examines the attitudes of general medical practitioners towards competition and advertising and the changes that have occurred between 1985 and 1988. The data was derived from a self completion questionnaire, 1500 of which were evenly distributed among the members of five professions; doctors, dentists, lawyers, accountants and veterinarians. General practitioners are now favourably disposed towards advertising by the profession as a whole in an effort to increase awareness of medical services (70% in favour in 1988 compared to only 53% in 1985), but the perceived need for increased business efficiency has lessened (70% in 1988 compared to 78% in 1985). Collegiality continues to be the dominant ideology but this position has weakened slightly. In 1988 only 65% of general practitioners regarded other members of the profession as colleagues rather than competitors, compared to 73% in 1985.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007400	Interprofessional Relations	The reciprocal interaction of two or more professional individuals.	Etiquette, Medical,Medical Etiquette,Relations, Interprofessional
D009520	New Zealand	A group of islands in the southwest Pacific. Its capital is Wellington. It was discovered by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642 and circumnavigated by Cook in 1769. Colonized in 1840 by the New Zealand Company, it became a British crown colony in 1840 until 1907 when colonial status was terminated. New Zealand is a partly anglicized form of the original Dutch name Nieuw Zeeland, new sea land, possibly with reference to the Dutch province of Zeeland. (From Webster's New Geographical Dictionary, 1988, p842 & Room, Brewer's Dictionary of Names, 1992, p378)
D010821	Physicians, Family	Those physicians who have completed the education requirements specified by the American Academy of Family Physicians.	Family Physician,Family Physicians,Physician, Family
D011216	Practice Management, Medical	The organization and operation of the business aspects of a physician's practice.	Medical Practice Management Services,Management, Medical Practice,Medical Practice Management,Practice Management Services, Medical,Managements, Medical Practice,Medical Practice Managements,Practice Managements, Medical
D011795	Surveys and Questionnaires	Collections of data obtained from voluntary subjects. The information usually takes the form of answers to questions, or suggestions.	Community Survey,Nonrespondent,Questionnaire,Questionnaires,Respondent,Survey,Survey Method,Survey Methods,Surveys,Baseline Survey,Community Surveys,Methodology, Survey,Nonrespondents,Questionnaire Design,Randomized Response Technique,Repeated Rounds of Survey,Respondents,Survey Methodology,Baseline Surveys,Design, Questionnaire,Designs, Questionnaire,Methods, Survey,Questionnaire Designs,Questionnaires and Surveys,Randomized Response Techniques,Response Technique, Randomized,Response Techniques, Randomized,Survey, Baseline,Survey, Community,Surveys, Baseline,Surveys, Community,Techniques, Randomized Response
D003813	Dentistry	The profession concerned with the teeth, oral cavity, and associated structures, and the diagnosis and treatment of their diseases including prevention and the restoration of defective and missing tissue.
D004465	Economic Competition	The effort of two or more parties to secure the business of a third party by offering, usually under fair or equitable rules of business practice, the most favorable terms.	Competition, Economic,Competitions, Economic,Economic Competitions
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000329	Advertising	Works about the act or practice of calling public attention to a product, service, need, etc., especially by paid announcements in newspapers, magazines, on radio, or on television. (Random House Unabridged Dictionary, 2d ed)	Advertising as Topic,Advertisement as Topic,Telemarketing,Advertisings
D001291	Attitude of Health Personnel	Attitudes of personnel toward their patients, other professionals, toward the medical care system, etc.	Staff Attitude,Attitude, Staff,Attitudes, Staff,Health Personnel Attitude,Health Personnel Attitudes,Staff Attitudes