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4 Proven Patient Engagement Strategies That Exist Today

Despite how far off many healthcare advances may seem, patient engagement strategies exist today that can go a long way towards improving satisfaction and engagement rates.

Unfortunately, according to a survey by UPCM’s Center for Connected Medicine, only one-third of providers believe they’re delivering top quality patient engagement strategies and patient experience.

On a more hopeful note, however, the survey also revealed that half of providers believe implementing tech-based patient engagement strategies is a “critical or high” priority for healthcare facilities. Fortunately, these 4 strategies designed to improve patient engagement and satisfaction exist and they exist right now.

1. Secure Messaging on the Patient Portal

Patients hate a useless doctor visit just as much as healthcare staff- It’s a waste of everyone’s time. Unfortunately, without proper means of communicating with a doctor outside of a formal appointment, these unnecessary visits are just part of the job.

Adding value to your patient portal by providing a secure messaging app can help physicians answer their patients’ smaller concerns quickly and effectively before having to dedicate entire appointments to them.

The idea behind adding this feature to a patient portal is to save both physicians and patients time, so it’s recommended that both parties clearly communicate their expectations.

Be sure to address questions like:

When can patients expect answers from their doctor?

What questions can be asked through the messenger versus in-person?

What kind of security measures are in place for information shared over patient messaging?

2. Patient Outreach Through Text

Healthcare facilities nowadays can leverage texting, today’s primary means of communication, to optimize appointment setting. Texting can be automated, take a second to send and respond to, and they’re immediately pushed onto a patient’s phone’s home screen. Texts can even be used to confirm appointments with patients, ensuring that, should they not be able to make it, that time slot can be given to another patient. In both cases, texting is efficient and streamlined, making the scheduling process less of a hassle for your patients and increasing their engagement.

If you plan on utilizing texts, ensure your hospital’s messaging platform is secure and HIPAA-compliant as the CMS demands.

3. Bedside Tablets Provide Patient Engagement, Entertainment, and Education

Even if it’s for the sake of healing, no one likes being confined in a hospital room patiently waiting for their discharge. Bedside medical tablets can help make a patient’s stay less claustrophobic by giving them access to the internet, entertainment, and more.

Of course, patient engagement strategies shouldn’t be limited to just providing entertainment, they should also empower patients. Nowadays, the average patient wants access to their data and knowledge on their condition in order to play a more involved role in their recuperation. Bedside tablets can address this need by allowing physicians to assign education programs that give patients deeper insight into their conditions and treatment.

4. Wearable Patient Devices

Patient wearables have become much more popular as at home care becomes more common and patients seek more ways to become involved in their healthcare. Wearables can take many forms, from simple pedometers and smartwatches to wearable ECG monitors. Regardless of the form they take, they allow patients to log information such as their activity, diet, symptoms, and adherence to treatments. This data can be sent to physicians instantly and used to make predictive diagnoses and treatment adjustments.

Remember, though, that each piece of internet connected technology is a gateway for cybercriminals looking to steal valuable patient data. Ensure you and your IT team are taking proper cybersecurity measures if you plan on giving patients wearable devices to take home.

Patient Engagement Strategies are Here and are Here Today

Patient engagement strategies aren’t some far off innovation we need to wait for like explainable AI or EHR interoperability. There are steps you can take today that can do wonders for the morale and satisfaction of those who seek your care. More often than not, speaking to your patients about what they need to make their care easier can reveal a mountain of insight. For more information on the tech-side of patient engagement strategies, contact an expert from Cybernet today.

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