Consumer Trust - Challenge for E-healthcare

The evolution of Internet within the last years and the continuous advances in electronic commerce and communication provide exciting opportunities to implement a powerful framework of resources, tools and applications that revolutionize the way in which healthcare institutions interact with their patients, as well as deliver and manage medical services. Internet-based healthcare is the application of information and communication technologies across the whole range of healthcare functions. It covers everything from electronic prescriptions and computerized medical records to the use of new systems and services that cut waiting times and reduces data errors. Internet-benefits management promises to simplify and reduce costs for employers and bring more choices and control. The development and implementation of Web-enabled communication, patient services and other e-health initiatives are increasingly important to maintaining a competitive advantage and to compete for the market share. More importantly, the value added for patients by facilitating access to information and resources is expected to improve the quality of services, the speed of treatment and potentially to rationalize the management of administrative processes. However, the introductions of such e-healthcare services into the market can be successful on the condition that customers will recognize all these advantages and have trust in organizations provide theses e-services. In this paper authors will concentrate on customer trust as key factor determining success of e-healthcare. The purpose of this study will determine the character and power of trust placed by customers in e-healthcare, and to identify factors influencing and diversifying customers trust to e-healthcare. Authors have ventured a thesis that customer trust to e-healthcare in Poland is high as a consequence of even higher customer satisfaction with traditional healthcare services and great customer trust in traditional healthcare insti- tutions.