A “design-pattern”-based approach for analyzing e-health business models

Background many e-health initiatives and projects were launched in the last couple of years, a large number of them failed or are prone to fail. These initiatives either missed to articulate a clear value proposition to patients or lacked a sustainable profit generation formula. e problem is the difficulty to understand and express the business logic behind e-health services in todayʹs complex environment. Therefore, it is the aim of this study to provide appropriate means to analyze and explain business logics of e-health service provisions. s udy is of ethnographic nature, since business logics were studied in their social and cultural context. Furthermore, insights were gathered from a thematic literature review on business models in the healthcare sector. s on the “design pattern” concept applied in architecture and software engineering, three distinct examples of archetypical design solutions of successful business models are discussed. sions ations of the different, isolated business logics can help to increase the understanding of value creation and revenue mechanisms. Findings of this study provide e-health marketers with a tool set to develop more sustainable business models. They facilitate further research on innovation and experimentation with different business model designs.