title: [Supplementary services used as marketing tools in the competition among private practice doctors].
abstract: What is the relation between additional healthcare services, marketing and competition among office-based physicians?
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The best and truly effective marketing strategy is a satisfied patient recommending his doctor's services to others. Hence, good marketing starts with a convincing service concept, not just with advertising. More and more frequently patients ask for supplementary health service offerings. Additional services tailored to individual practices--e.g., in the field of nutrition, sports, fitness, wellness, aesthetics--meet the patients' demands, but at the same time they provide a competitive advantage over the ordinary medical practice. And what is more, these additional healthcare services have a nice side effect: they earn an additional income which is not unwelcome in times of decreasing revenues from the public healthcare system. The much sought-after potential for additional services and income can be achieved by offering commercial medical services, e.g., the sale of healthcare products. The coexistence of the doctor's commercial and non-commercial medical services is admissible as long as certain rules of professional conduct and tax laws are followed.
authors.affiliation: Rechtsanwalt und Fachanwalt für Medizinrecht, Mainz. h.meurers@messner-meurers.de
authors.forename: Horst
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Meurers
mesh_terms: D000329:Advertising / Q000379:methods; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D040541:Marketing / Q000379:methods*; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology; D011331:Private Practice / Q000191:economics*