April 25-29 marks Patient Experience Week, which is meant to recognize healthcare staff that work hard every day to bring a positive patient experience. It’s always important to give staff members the recognition they deserve, especially after what they have endured over the last two years, but this week, in particular, is notable.
The patient experience has gone through tremendous changes in recent history. The pandemic certainly sped up the process, but the rise in healthcare consumer technology has primarily led the way. While some providers may have found their groove, others are still having trouble improving their patient experience and are looking for patient engagement strategies to amp up their growth.
The Benefits of Improving Patient Experience
Some providers might be thinking, “Why is it so important to improve patient experience? People always need doctors, so as long as it’s going ok, patients will still return.”
The fact is that this way of thinking will hurt in the long run. Patients want more than an average experience, and providers should, too, for many valid reasons.
Better Health Outcomes
According to the CDC, if patients are encouraged to act on their health, they’re more likely to have better health outcomes. A large part of acting on their health is having the type of healthcare experience that warrants motivation. While a patient might be in good health, a bad experience may deter them from listening to their doctor.
Build Market Share
Just like with any other business, people love to share positive experiences from a doctor visit, including interactions with the staff, the product and the service. House contractors are a perfect example. When a friend finds one that’s reliable, easy to work with and reasonably priced, they recommend them to everyone because most people have a difficult time finding one that’s good.
Healthcare providers and doctors are the same way. If patients love the experience, they will share it with others.
Patient Experience Best Practices: Examples
Support Healthcare Staff
Healthcare organizations are nothing without their staff. Taking care of their needs should be a top priority to improve the patient experience. In these examples, you’ll learn how PatientBond addressed this need by solving problems and barriers to a superior patient experience while reducing burdens on the staff.
Reducing Staff Burden through Digital, On-Demand Messaging
Currently, most healthcare organizations are having trouble with staffing. And when organizations are low on staff, it hurts the care experience because the staff that remains are strained. Midwest Express Clinic saw the impact and reached out to PatientBond to address it through digital messaging.
Boosting Online Patient Payments by Improving the Patient Experience
In a different scenario, one urgent care center was trying to determine how to increase patient financial responsibility payments to encourage company growth. In the process of improving this workflow with PatientBond, they also improved their patient engagement.
Personalize Communications
Patients are eager for a personalized experience. When every consumer product and experience can be personalized, why shouldn’t healthcare work the same way to meet patient expectations? These examples encompass how personalizing the patient experience can reap rewards.
Increase Market Share and Patient Loyalty by Leveraging Technology
CRH Healthcare was looking for a better way to engage their patients that was purposeful. They thought that PatientBond’s approach to customizing communications could be the answer they were looking for. Through personalized patient communications, they created more patient touchpoints, reduced staff time and improved their Google review rating.
Improving Patient Satisfaction Rates for Specialty Pharmacy
One specialty pharmacy was interested in personalizing the patient experience by narrowing in on their PatientBond psychographic profile. They tweaked their communications to fit the values and beliefs each patient embodied. As a result, it improved patient satisfaction for patients within their medication adherence plans.
Looking for more ways to improve the patient experience through patient engagement? Our patient engagement strategies guide can help.
