Who is Facing Higher Increased Demand After the Online-Offline Channel Integration? Evidence from Public Hospitals in China

BACKGROUND: In recent years, the medical industry has been significantly impacted by internet technology, especially with the growing integration of online and offline channel within public hospitals. OBJECTIVE: Our study aims to explore the effects of hospitals’ online-offline channel integration on doctors’ offline visits and investigate how the effects of integration varied across doctors with different professional titles. METHODS: Our study employs a panel dataset from a large comprehensive hospital in China and conducts staggered difference-in-differences (DID) approach. RESULTS: We find that online-offline channel integration within public hospitals is associated with about 15.5% increase in offline visits, and the 1% growth of monthly number of online visits is associated with about 10.6% monthly offline visits increase. Furthermore, our results indicate that the effectiveness of online-offline channel integration is more pronounced for doctors with lower professional titles compared to those with higher professional titles. CONCLUSION: Our study provides evidence for policymakers and hospital managers that integrating online and offline channels can optimize the distribution of medical personnel resources within public hospitals. We recommend that young or less-experienced doctors actively participate in hospital-operated online platforms to enhance their professional skills through practical experience.