The Theory of Consumer Behaviour and Demand in a New Paradigm of Digital Healthcare

The article assesses the changing trends in the behaviour of consumers of medical services and building a new behavioural integrated model of medical services in the context of digital transformation of healthcare. The methodological basis of the study is the analysis of relevant domestic and foreign scientific literature on the issues under consideration, as well as the results of published expert interviews with healthcare specialists. The authors describe the concept of digital healthcare as a fundamental ecosystem in terms of the formation of new channels of interaction with the patient while providing medical services. They then characterise the role of new investors in the field of digital medicine - the largest technological leaders in terms of market capitalisation. The paper examines the basic principles of consumer behaviour in the medical services market underlying the demand in the traditional doctorcentered model of medical care, formulates the key approaches to changing the behaviour of the consumer s under the influence of healthcare digital transformation. The authors argue that through digitalisation healthcare goes far beyond the medical industry and acquires an intersectoral integrated character. They build a behavioural patient-centered model of a consumer of medical services in the new paradigm of digital healthcare. The new role of the patient as a partner in managing the healthcare system is substantiated. The results of the work contribute to the economic theory of consumer behaviour in the provision of medical services, as well as to the theory of health economics. The practical significance of the work lies in the possibility to implement the proposed target model for the provision of medical care in primary and secondary health care organisations as part of digitalisation programs.