If you didn’t make it to the NG Healthcare Digital Summit, read on for a summary of takeaways and common challenges facing healthcare industry leaders. We heard from nearly all healthcare leaders in attendance that improving the patient experience is a top business priority, but they are not always sure where to start. Here are five digital strategies to get started improving the patient experience.
Build a digital front door (Not just a commoditized website).
Working with an onshore partner that understands national and regional consumer and digital healthcare trends is a great place to start building a digital front door. More than a transactional space and not a commoditized website, a well-built digital front door should meet both patient and business needs, as well as drive behavioral change.
The COVID-19 pandemic made hospitals, health systems and health insurers highly aware that consumers expect their digital experiences to be on par with digital experiences they have with retail andFinTech, and that they are far behind these industries. Though full-blown digital transformation can take years, consider building a “digital front door” as a foundational place to start. And from there, drill down to the top needs for customers, patients and providers. Use agile product development processes to quickly identify specific patient needs within a particular segment of patients or health conditions, and spin up testable, iterative prototypes.
Connect existing platforms and tools (EHR, HIT, etc.) to make a seamless digital ecosystem that centers around the patient.
One of the most significant barriers to IT system interoperability are siloed EHR or EMR systems. That’s because these systems were initially designed to collect transactional, fee-for-service data; not the systems that are essential to improve patient care. Nor are standalone EHR systems easy to integrate with other systems.
In a patient-centered model, healthcare systems hyper-focus on the “patient journey” and design care services and communications around the patient. Today, in most healthcare systems, care is based on transactions, “assembly lines” that move people as fast as possible while providing them with services and supplies. You go to the ER; you get bills from the hospital, the anesthesiologist, ER doctor and pharmacy.
To ensure your healthcare technology platforms prioritize patient experience, don’t summarize your data by hospital, location or department. Modernize your systems on the cornerstone of patient experience and everything else will fall into place.
Read this article on how to put patients first when modernizing healthcare technology for an in-depth look at creating a seamless, resilient digital ecosystem.