8 Patient Engagement Strategies to Boost Healthcare Outcomes

Patient Engagement has become the buzzword in the care industry, especially since the pandemic.

As per a report by Meditab, 59% of Millennials would switch doctors for better online access. Besides 79% of patients are likely to choose a provider with online, self-service, and mobile interactivity.

Digitalization trends are shaping patients’ expectations. Healthcare providers must adjust their strategies to match these expectations.

Here are all the strategies you need. They will help you become a patient-centric, value-driven healthcare organization.

1. Streamline Appointment Scheduling

Patients today don’t have the patience to sit through long wait times. Yet, this is a standard in conventional healthcare models. It’s due to limited slots and caregiver availability. Coordinating appointments is hard. You have to do it across many providers, departments, or care settings. This adds complexity to the scheduling process. High no-shows and cancellation rates of patients cause all this to go to waste.

Simplifying this process means using scheduling systems. They make scheduling easy via phone, online portals, and mobile apps. This allows patients to get real-time availability updates. They can use it to match patients’ diverse needs.

Also, 72% of patients in healthcare say booking appointments online helps them keep them: Solvedge

2. Personalize Healthcare Reminders

Not all patients are the same and neither are their issues. To start the Patient Engagement strategy, let go of the one-size-fits-all approach. Cater to each patient in a unique way.

Care providers can do this using data and Electronic Health Records (EHRs). They use them to meet the needs of each patient and adjust their reminders and notifications. Automated reminders can help here. They prompt patients about their upcoming appointments, medication refills, or preventive screenings. Healthcare providers can also tailor reminders for each patient. This ensures that patients become more active in their healthcare. They also follow their care plans.

3. Remote Monitoring & Telehealth Services

Telehealth services have been around for a long time. But, only recently have they become a big part of mainstream healthcare. And it’s here to stay, even though the pandemic has subsided.

A GlobalMed report found that 74% of millennials prefer teleconsultations to in-person appointments

To meet these expectations, healthcare organizations need to use technology. They should use solutions such as remote monitoring and telehealth. Also, adding these telehealth platforms to your healthcare contact center workflow can be the first step. It can lead to convenient and efficient healthcare delivery.

A February 2022 McKinsey report based on the previous year’s research found that 55% of patients were “much more satisfied” with teleconsultations and telehealth care. They were more satisfied with them than with in-person care.

4. Diversify Communication Channels

The number one thing about transforming your approach towards healthcare is recognizing that patients now have exposure to many communication channels.

According to research by NICE, 80% of patients prefer digital communication channels.

This means that sticking to telephonic conversations and face-to-face interactions wouldn’t really stand out for your patients. The solution is to offer your patients many ways to communicate. These include phone, email, text, social media, web chat, and more. This would do two things for a healthcare organization:

• Allow them to accommodate patients’ preferences.
• Give them the scope to analyze patients’ preferences and tailor outreach.

Integrating multiple channels into a single platform can save time. It can also reduce hassle by catering to your patients with relevant context and efficiency.

5. Invest in the Right Technology

You must invest in modern healthcare solutions first. You need this to achieve a streamlined scheduling process. It will also improve patient access to healthcare data and use resources better. Healthcare organizations can use appointment scheduling platforms, predictive analytics tools, and telehealth platforms. These tools offer scalability, flexibility, and real-time insights. These tools make care delivery more efficient.

Tools like CTI Connectors, Agent Desktops, and Omnichannel solutions can optimize the operations of healthcare contact centers. They offer the benefits of scalability, flexibility, and real-time insights, which are a must for contact centers that are hard-pressed to deliver high-quality personalized care.

6. Prioritize Self-Service Patient Portals

Today, 88% of people expect organizations to have an online self-service support portal.

Patient empowerment through self-service portals gives them healthcare control. This includes scheduling appointments, accessing medical records, and coordinating care.

Self-service portals offer convenience and flexibility. They offer 24/7 access to essential healthcare services. They reduce the burden on healthcare staff.

Gartner estimates that 85% of customer service interactions will begin with self-service. They’ll make up most of all customer engagement in the next two years.

7. Automate Clinical Workflows

According to a study published in the Journal of Healthcare Management, an average 500-bed hospital loses more than $4 million each year due to communication inefficiencies.

Effective management of clinical workflows is important to replace outdated and inefficient communication systems and make real gains in terms of efficiency. Automating workflows includes appointment reminders, pre-visit assessments, and post-visit follow-ups, to streamline the delivery process. Care organizations can make use of automation tools and EHR/EMR integrations to reduce administrative burdens and manual errors. Such automated workflows help in:

• Enabling proactive patient engagement
• Deliver personalzied care
• Help in continuous monitoring of the patient’s health

8. Ensure Continuous Engagement: Pre and Post Care

Active engagement throughout the entire healthcare process is a must in today’s healthcare scenario. As per a report by NextGen, a continuous engagement process involving pre-, during, and post-engagement ensures a 40% reduced chance of hospital readmission.

This continuous engagement flow involves patients in decision-making, helping them diagnose symptoms and ensuring adherence to aftercare guidelines. Consistent support during this entire process reduces the chances of complications and impacts the patient’s overall well-being and satisfaction positively. To ensure this support, telemedicine, mobile apps, and online platforms facilitate consistent communication between patients and providers.

Wrap Up

Patients are at the heart of modern healthcare. This is especially true after the digital revolution. As patients’ needs and expectations change. Providers must be patient-focused and value-driven. To do this, they must follow detailed plans. These plans will drive big improvements in patient outcomes, satisfaction, and care delivery.