Abstract

The Shouldice Hospital, in Thornhill Ontario has been delivering excellent patient-perceived service quality for many years and is considered to be one of the best-managed hospitals in the world (Heskett et al., 1997). The Shouldice's patient-centric strategy is a benchmark of success. In fact, patients from this leading institution are highly satisfied and thereafter advocate their positive experiences (Paulin et al., 2002). This study integrates both marketing and management concepts in order to provide a better understanding of the hospital personnel's behaviors. The purpose is to comprehend how the personnel contribute to this leading patient-centric strategy. The goal is to recognize whether their contribution is due to the Shouldice image or to an exceptional work environment. The emphasis is placed on positive word-of-mouth of employees, which is related to the internal marketing and influenced by exchange constructs, such as organizational commitment, organizational support, work motivator characteristics, and job satisfaction. The findings suggest that organizational commitment predetermines hospital personnel's positive word-of-mouth towards potential patients and potential employees, and the personnel's satisfaction with the hospital. This last result suggests that intention to recommend the hospital (external marketing) is a reflection of the internal service quality (internal marketing) which is primarily related to the personnel's organizational commitment. Finally, even if the work environment is not perceived as exceptional, the commitment to the Shouldice image leads to the personnel's contribution to the patient-centric strategy.