poorer "load factor."
What really made the traditional hospital unique, however, was how its services were provided. The hospital did not, for the most part, really provide a service directly to patients. Rather, it provided facility and trained staff support workers, nurses, and junior physicians (interns and residents) to individual physicians. The physicians then used the hospital's services at their own discretion in treating their patients. Only the emergency room and specialized clinics (such as those providing first line health service to the poor) encountered patients directly. Mainstream patients were checked in and out by the patient's personal physician or attending specialist.
Thus, the traditional hospital did not market itself directly to the public as prospective patients. Instead, it marketed itself to physicians. The hospital that could attract doctors would automatically gain patients. From the viewpoint of the ultimate consumer, the patient, this meant minimal control over the care service provided. Within broad limits, it didn't matter whether a patient liked a particular hospital, or would rather go to some other one. The doctor made the decision. A doctor mig
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