Who Visits Hospital Websites AND Brings Value?

A 2012 national web-based survey of 1,900 adults found that 32% reported visiting a hospital website in the past year.  

Question: Are all these website visitors of equal value to hospitals in terms of revenue generation?

​To provide one answer, the hospital website visit data and actual hospital claims data was examined in relation to the Pattern of Adapting to Health (PATH). The hospital claims data came from health plan facility claims tracked for three years against the member’s dominant PATH. The facility claims were expressed in 2017 dollars in amounts below or above the overall average claims. ​​

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Adults dominated by six PATH had higher than average hospital website visits. Among these, only adults dominated by PATH 7 delivered higher value to hospitals in terms of billable insurance claims totaling $4,500 above the average per discharge over three years. Adults dominated by PATH 4 also brought in more patient care revenues but did so with below average hospital website visits.  Adults dominated by every other PATH, even those reporting higher hospital website visits (PATH 3, 5, 6 and 8) generated below average hospital revenues.

Answer: It appears, based on this quick review, that all hospital website visitors cannot be considered equal in terms of their actual revenue value to hospitals.