4 Ways Patient Engagement Makes Patient Outreach Better

Patient engagement technology fosters interactive patient-provider communication

40 – 80 percent of the medical information provided by healthcare practitioners is forgotten immediately. Almost half of the information that is remembered is incorrect.

In the status-quo patient-provider relationship, communications between patients and physicians can feel like a one-way street. The physician (likely on a time crunch) asks questions, reviews medical history, requests labs and necessary diagnostics, and provides assessment and care recommendations to the patient – hoping that the care plan is understood. 

But what happens if the patient doesn’t ask questions during the appointment, misunderstands the instructions, and forgets to take their medication on schedule? Having a tool the provider and their staff can easily leverage to follow up with patients and possibly their family members after the encounter is key. It is essential to provide a seamless experience for the patient or their family members to reach back to the provider’s staff for questions and concerns about their treatment plan.

Research shows that engaging patients throughout their care journey drives better care plan adherence and improves patient outcomes. By investing in the patient experience, providers will also benefit from lower readmission rates, reduced no-show appointments, and a better understanding of their care plan. 

TigerConnect Patient Engagement Simple and secure virtual communication for providers and patients   Download the Guide

 

Four ways patient engagement makes patient outreach better

• Secure test result notifications 

Care teams can share test results with patients via secure text message as they become available and provide options on the next steps for the patient. If testing for COVID has occurred, texted test results can help positive patients isolate sooner to reduce their exposure to others.

• Medication reminders and symptom check-ins.

  According to the American Medical Association, inadequate communication accounts for over 50% of medication nonadherence. TigerConnect Patient Engagement provides secure text messaging capabilities to follow up with patients concerning their disease status or send reminders to support medication or appointment adherence. If a patient expresses concern regarding symptoms or medications, clinicians can quickly schedule a video chat to provide care. Patients who are more engaged with their physician’s care plan are more likely to adhere to this plan, reducing preventable emergency department visits.

• Coordinate with patients and their caregivers.

When the provider, patient, and family members are all aligned on the care plan, the patient is empowered to effectively move forward with those plans.  Reducing the barriers from patients or family members to follow up on questions and concerns is key to empowering the patient to follow the prescribed plan.  Automating the provider’s ability to follow the patient’s adherence to the care plan will streamline the support staff’s workflow required for the ongoing engagement with their patients.

• Reduce missed appointments with appointment reminders.

Missed appointments directly impact the provider’s revenue stream and also extends the time a patient has to wait to receive care from their provider.  Automated appointment reminders can address both issues by sending out SMS reminders before the scheduled appointment.

Features to look for in a patient engagement solution:

TigerConnect Patient Engagement is a mobile-first communication platform that supports internal health system staff collaboration. Also, it enables doctors, nurses, and clinical support staff to connect seamlessly with patients via SMS messaging.

• No passwords or patient apps to remember – Using TigerConnect, patients simply click a secure, encrypted URL link delivered via SMS.  This URL launches a HIPPA compliant web browser conversation where providers and patients can easily discuss care topics, share pictures or documents required to resolve the issue. 
• HIPAA compliant video, voice, and text capabilities – Effortlessly engage patients by leveraging secure messaging to send appointment reminders, collecting intake documents, and driving post-visit care plan adherence with regular follow-ups and educational materials.
• EHR integration – Integrate directly with your EHR for powerful workflow automation that automatically syncs patient lists for immediate outreach to patients or family members.
• A single app for all collaboration – The TigerConnect Clinical Collaboration Platform fosters seamless communication. Providers can easily switch between patient and provider conversations, add care team members to existing conversations, and forward messages from a patient to other physicians.

Watch our Quick Feature Video to learn how TigerConnect Patient Engagement elevates how care teams and patients communicate to deliver reliable and consistent patient outreach.

Tags: Patient engagement tools, TigerConnect Patient Engagement, Patient Communications, Patient Experience, Patient Engagement