Commercial healthcare brokerage: pilot research in Delhi and London (360G-Wellcome-212171_Z_18_Z)

This research examines commercial brokerage of access to healthcare. Healthcare brokerage is performed by actors spanning a range of formality and organisation. There are individuals who facilitate care for others in their communities in return for financial or social rewards, and companies that broker personalised healthcare packages for wealthy domestic and international healthcare users. Brokers are influential mediators in the process of accessing healthcare, with important implications for the forms of care that users seek and receive, yet their activities and evolution are poorly theorised. The research focuses on the companies providing healthcare brokerage services in two settings: Delhi and London. These settings offer a range of specialised healthcare services and are established destinations for domestic and international healthcare users seeking care otherwise unavailable in their home locality. The requested funds will be used to conduct preliminary research, aiming to examine the trajectories and practices of companies in these settings using interviews with representatives in the industry. The work will inform design of a Wellcome Trust fellowship application and will enable further elaboration of a conceptual framework to be written up and submitted to a peer-reviewed journal.