The feminization of American medicine. The transformation of health care from a masculine orientation to a more feminine orientation requires a new marketing approach.

Although the transformation of American medicine in the last part of the twentieth century has been well documented, a major development that has significant implications for health care marketing has been essentially overlooked. This development has been the shift in health care from a primarily masculine orientation to a primarily feminine orientation. This shift has been driven by, among other factors, the transition from an acute care orientation to a chronic care orientation and calls for a qualitatively different approach to the marketing of health services.