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This paper aims to address research gaps with regard to the relationship between market orientation and marketing performance when small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are located within a service cluster. The three main objectives of this research are to determine the effect that the cluster can have on both the market orientation of clustered companies and their marketing performance and to furthermore evaluate the effect of the market orientation of companies in the cluster on their marketing performance.

This research used executive-level data that were obtained by carrying out a survey involving a unique dataset of 133 Colombian health-related businesses located in the city of Cali (Colombia) in 2014. A system of equations was modeled using SMART PLS. This analysis was complemented by a qualitative study that involved conducting in-depth interviews in six companies.

The results showed that, among the SMEs, membership in an urban services cluster did not significantly influence marketing performance or the implementation of marketing orientation practices. No differences were observed in internal managerial practices implemented between companies that were co-located and isolated. However, a higher level of competitor orientation was associated with greater marketing performance. Given the verified absence of moderating and mediating effects, our work provides a reasonable basis for proposing future research and practical recommendations.

While research has demonstrated the relationship between a company's market orientation and marketing performance, this type of analysis has not been carried out on service SMEs in geographic concentrations or clusters.

本文旨在處理涉及市場導向與營銷績效間的關係的研究缺口. 當中小型企業處於服務群集內, 市場導向與其營銷績效間存在相互關係；本文旨在處理涉及這關係的研究缺口. 本研究有以下的主要目標：（1）找出群集對群集公司的市場導向及其營銷績效兩者的影響；（2）繼而評估在群集內公司的市場導向對其營銷績效的影響.

本研究使用透過進行一項調查而取得的管理階層數據，而這調查涉及於2014年位於卡利市（哥倫比亞）133間與健康衛生有關的哥倫比亞企業的獨特資料集。一個方程式體系透過使用SmartPLS被模擬出來. 這分析有個補充輔助，就是一個涉及在六間公司內進行的深層訪談的質性研究.

研究結果顯示，就有關的中小型企業而言，擁有城市服務群集身份並沒顯著地影響營銷績效或市場導向慣常做法的施行。對處於同一地點的公司，抑或是隔離的公司，其內部施行的管理慣常做法並沒觀察到有所不同。但是，高水平的競爭者導向與更佳的營銷績效兩者是相關的。考慮到調節及仲介效果被證實不存在，我們的研究為日後研究及實際建議的提出提供合理的基礎.

從前的研究證實了公司的市場導向與營銷績效是相關的，唯這類研究分析從來沒有在地理集中或群集內的服務中小型企業上進行過.

Is humanity heading to immortal living? If so, what areas of society are playing an active role in achieving this? In order to understand this, the study explores the relationship between immortality and the wellness and medical tourism industry to seek potential relationships between them and ultimately, asks difficult questions about the growth of these tourism sectors and the potential need for greater regulation of them.

Taking a pragmatic philosophical approach and through the examination of refined information from secondary sources and published material and reports, the study presents original theoretical knowledge and a model exploring tourism and human immortality.

This paper argues that continued growth in the wellness and medical markets today could lead to a world where transhumanists and cyborgs are present in our world, even taking over from Homo sapiens. The study presents a model highlighting the potential role of wellness and medical tourism markets, illustrating the potential for future consumer services that could further fuel the search for immortality. Thus, how such markets and consumer desires are (in)directly supporting humanities desire for (non-human) immortal existence.

Today, individuals are driven by wellness practices and medical and cosmetic desires and are willing to travel the globe in search of companies who are either capable of carrying out the desired procedures or seeking prices more affordable to them. This research offers novel insights into these complex relationships and maps the affiliation between wellness and medical practices and the concept of immortality.

The purpose of this paper is twofold: First, it analyzes demand and supply-side factors that influence patient flows to and from Austria. Second, building on the empirical research and existing conceptualizations, the study offers a general extended framework to guide future comparative analysis.

The paper draws on multiple data sources including a literature review, secondary data, website analysis and semi-structured interviews with patients and health providers. Content analysis was carried out to identify common motives for seeking care abroad and providers' orientation towards medical travel.

Outbound medical travel is largely determined by factors of access, affordability and vicinity, while inbound medical travel is predominately driven by a lack of adequate medical infrastructure in source countries and quality, both in terms of medical and service quality. Providers distinguish themselves according to the extent they take part in medical travel.

The findings emerging from a single country case study approach cannot be generalized across settings and contexts, albeit contributing to a better understanding of current medical travel patterns in Europe.

Unlike most recent contributions, this study focuses both on inbound and outbound medical travel in Austria and investigates patient flows for distinctive treatments and drivers. While analysis of the supply-side of medical travel is often limited to tourism studies, this study provides a critical insight into developments in Europe from a health policy perspective, acknowledging that diverse medical travel patterns in Europe coexist.

It is widely believed that transgender individuals in Nepal inject silicone for face and body manipulation, a phenomenon thought to be common among transgender individuals globally. Therefore, this qualitative study conducted in Nepal explored: (1) awareness of silicone use and sources of information; (2) reasons for using silicone; (3) notion of cost and quality of these procedures; (4) reported negative aspects, including side effects and (5) health seeking behaviors of Nepali transgender women.

The authors carried out eight focus group discussions (FGDs) with transgender women at four different districts of Nepal, five in the capital Kathmandu and three in different rural areas. We also interviewed three transgender women who preferred not to participate in the FGD but were happy to be interviewed separately. Similarly, six interviews with stakeholders working for sexual and gender minority populations were also conducted.

Most FGD participants were young (mean age 23.06 ± 3.9 years) and the majority (55%; n = 34) completed grade six to high school level. Peer networks of transgender people and the Internet were the more popular sources of information about silicone. The decision to use silicone was largely influenced by the desire to look beautiful and more feminine. Often they appear not to follow the recommended procedures for silicone use. Their health seeking behavior regarding side effects or complications of these procedures was very poor.

Findings reflect that targeted interventions aimed at transgender individuals should educate them on the use of silicone, as well as explore safe and affordable approaches to meet gender-related appearance needs of Nepali transgender people.

The purpose of the paper is to highlight the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the healthcare industry through the Ayushman Bharat health protection scheme by analyzing various technologies being integrated to improve the customer service and experiences in India. The key focus lies on the understanding of the influence of AI in the healthcare system services, the clinical treatment, and the facilities to progress with accurate and precise health screening in India.

A systematic study on the emerging technologies of AI and the applications in the healthcare sector is presented in the form of a viewpoint.

AI certainly enhances experiential services; however, it cannot surpass the human touch which is an essential determinant of experiential healthcare services. AI acts as an effective complementary dimension to the future of healthcare.

This viewpoint discusses the applications and role of AI with the help of relevant examples. It highlights the different technologies being applied and how they will be used in the future focusing upon the Ayushman Bharat health protection scheme in India.

The purpose of this paper is to disseminate among concerned professionals its certain operational aspects, including some possible implications on health and medical care practices.

It is written on the basis of the author’s special study of a diverse source of information, as well as on author’s practical experience and observation in this particular area.

Special attention is paid to possible public health impacts within a broad social and economic framework, as well as to its impacts on the existing national health care systems in countries, that would possibly lead to certain degree of inequity in health at national level as an important consequence of health development progress.

Knowledge and understanding gained from this paper might be useful in the efforts to develop and manage national health care systems to ensure a reasonable balance in health status of people of all groups.