Religious Beliefs and Practices Affecting Marketing by Health Care Organizations in a Multicultural Community: A Preliminary Investigation

Abstract

Different religious beliefs and practices in multicultural communities could have a considerable effect on health care organizations. It is a fact that many communities are characterized by multicultural and multireligious compositions, especially in certain parts of the world. Health care organizations, such as hospitals, clinics and care centres, have been experiencing increasing demand for differentiated services and related marketing activities, in line with the multireligious demands of their markets. To some extent this matter can be addressed by way of target or niche marketing practices, but in large health care organizations management inevitably has to accommodate various needs due to multicultural differences in religious beliefs and practices.