An e-marketplace of healthcare and social care services: the perceived interest

• Author(s): Cruz-Cunha, Maria Manuela ; Varajão, João ; Miranda, Isabel ; Lopes, Nuno ; Simões, Ricardo
• Date: 2012
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/11110/550
• Origin: CiencIPCA
• Subject(s): e-Marketplace; healthcare services; social care services; elderly people; people with special needs
• Document Type: Article
• Language: English

Description

The health and social care sector is receiving growing attention for the last years, due to the increased life expectancy, the public demand for a better quality of life and for better health services. These requirements can be met with more cost-efficient approaches and using new technology-based solutions for providing services. The paper presents and discusses some of the main results of a study undertaken in Guimarães, a Municipality at the North of Portugal, on the perceived relevance of an e-Marketplace of social and healthcare services for the inhabitants in general, and in particular for people with special needs; the study also included the identification of the most relevant services to be offered by this platform and allowed concluding that such an e-Marketplace is of recognized relevance and that it is expected a good adhesion from the population. Financial support provided by the Municipality of Guimaraes, under a collaboration project with the University of Minho. Foundation for Science and Technology, Lisbon, through 3.° Quadro Comunitário de Apoio, and project PEst-C/CTM/LA0025/2011.