Building Business Relationships Through the Web: How Medical Technology Companies Enroll Stakeholders in Innovation Development and Uptake

• Authors: Myriam Hivon , Pascale Lehoux , Christopher J. Longo , Bryn Williams-Jones , Fiona A. Miller
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Websites are perceived as an additional communication space where public and private institutions and their stakeholders can interact and develop sustainable relationships. Although public relations scholars argue that both companies and consumers may benefit from virtual interactions, the growing online direct-to-consumer advertising and sale of health-related products has raised social and ethical concerns. Our study seeks to clarify the scope and nature of the virtual relationships that are specific to medical devices companies. Through a qualitative analysis of website, we show how four Canadian medical technology companies sought to enroll three types of stakeholders into their innovation development and commercialization strategies: investors, healthcare providers and patients. Our findings show that by reinforcing stereotypical relationships with investors, the websites maintain certain disconnect between the worlds of business and healthcare, and by creating proactive roles for healthcare providers and patients, they contribute to forge ethically convoluted relationships.

Keywords

EN

medical technology industry; stakeholder management; enrolment strategies; website analysis; ethics of communication

• Publisher: Sciendo
• Journal: International Review of Social Research
• Year: 2013
• Volume: 3
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 89-112

Dates

published

2013-06-01

online

2015-05-06

Contributors

author

Myriam Hivon

• Institute of Public Health Research of University of Montreal (IRSPUM), University of Montreal

author

Pascale Lehoux

• Department of Health Administration, University of Montreal, Institute of Public Health Research of University of Montreal (IRSPUM)

author

Christopher J. Longo

• Health Services Management, DeGroote School of Business, & Member, Centre for Health Economics and Policy Analysis, McMaster University

author

Bryn Williams-Jones

• Bioethics Programs, Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, IRSPUM, University of Montreal

author

Fiona A. Miller

• Department of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, University of Toronto

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Identifiers

DOI

10.1515/irsr-2013-0012