Author: Jeff Tormey
Important Tools That Can Help You Improve Patient Engagement
Why is patient engagement important in healthcare?
The goal of boosting patient engagement is to improve the effectiveness of the healthcare services you offer. Patient engagement allows you to stay up-to-date on your patient’s changing needs and therefore serve them better. By encouraging patient engagement, you also make patients owners of their healthcare and therefore work better with them. Click the link to continue learning about why patient engagement is important in healthcare.How Do You Improve Patient Engagement?
The best way to improve patient engagement is to increase the number of options a patient has to connect with you. These opportunities for your patients to connect with your practice are created by patient engagement tools. With covid-19, the most effective patient engagement tools are now digital and allow the practice to connect with the patient without ever being in the same room. Leaping into the digital may seem intimidating but the truth is that you can contract a patient engagement company to work out the logistics and even assist with ROI tracking.What Are the Top 5 Patient Engagement Tools Your Practice Should Have?
1. Social Media
Social media is consists of several interactive platforms your patients are already using. One of the advantages of social media is that the platforms are already developed and ready to use. The other advantage is that most people already know how to use them and are highly engaged. Social media can be used to receive feedback from patients, post announcements, and even educate your patients. Read more: Call Center & Patient Feedback: What You Need To Know2. Virtual Medicine
Virtual medicine or telemedicine allows the medical professional to connect directly with the patient without the need to be at the same location. This type of patient engagement tool is great for connecting with patients who experience mobility issues, are out of town, or have a highly contagious condition such as Covid-19.3. Appointment Management Software
This type of software allows your practice to keep better track of daily appointments, patient records, sends friendly alerts to remind patients of appointments, and helps track missed appointment trends. These actions will improve patient engagement by lowering the number of patients who miss their appointments.4. Electronic Prescription Management
This tool allows patients to have easier access to prescription refills or reauthorization by allowing them to request either action through an electronic portal. The doctor can issue the approval virtually and dispatch the electronic prescription directly to the pharmacy. This tool allows the patient to receive a quick answer from their provider and allows the provider to free up time.5. Patient Website
A patient website allows your patients to book appointments online, fill out patient information and history records online, and even pay their fees. This system allows the patient to stay engaged without having to interact with the practice in the office. It also cuts down on the duties of the receptionist and bookkeeper.In Summary
Enhancing healthcare patient engagement is essential for improving the effectiveness of healthcare services and ensuring that patients actively participate in their care. Engaged patients are more informed, leading to better health outcomes and stronger provider-patient relationships. For assistance with patient engagement, contact Guideway Care.
How to Measure Patient Satisfaction in Healthcare
Why is patient satisfaction important?
In healthcare, competition for the share of the wallet of patients is increasing, making it even more important to keep patients satisfied with the care they receive. If patients are happy with their experience, they are less likely to switch providers. It is also important to note that patient satisfaction does not equate to the quality of healthcare. While the quality of healthcare your practice provides may be impeccable, patients may not perceive that if the receptionist was rude or they waited a few minutes past their appointment time to be seen and that is the patient satisfaction aspect.Why Is Measuring Patient Satisfaction Important?
Knowledge is power and in the case of patient satisfaction in healthcare, the knowledge comes from data. By tracking a set of important metrics, you can formulate a plan to improve or maintain patient satisfaction and continue to keep your patients loyal and happy. Click here to learn more about how to improve the patient experience.What Are the Main Ways to Measure Patient Satisfaction in Healthcare?
Request and Monitor Feedback
A great way to measure patient satisfaction is simply by asking the patients directly about how they view their interaction with your practice. This can be done in the form of a written survey, a follow-up call, a Facebook post, or even a text. Receiving feedback from patients allows your healthcare practice to be held accountable for the patient’s experience while interacting with your organization. Patients who are not happy with their experience, will not necessarily point it out unless they are asked. For best results, allow the patient the option to remain anonymous, this can be achieved by providing a “patient feedback” box in the reception or by sending out an online survey that does not require a name. The results from the survey, follow-up calls, and other forms of feedback should be tracked and monitored for trends. Turn the results into patient experience statistics that can be analyzed. Once analyzed, develop a plan to maintain or improve the metrics.Follow Your Online Ratings
Our world becomes more and more digitalized every day and more people than ever rely on internet research to make healthcare decisions. Google and yelp reviews are two important places to start following to learn about how your patients view their interaction with your practice. You can also use google to find third-party review sites that may name your practice. Many of these third-party websites calculate patient satisfaction statistics in the form of a score assigned to your practice. These scores can be very helpful but it is important to understand how they are calculated to determine how well they align with your goals. For more nuanced guidance, contact Guideway Care.
Essential Call Center Metrics and KPIs to Track for Success
KPI stands for Key Performance Indicator and it is a metric that you establish to measure a certain aspect of success. In this case, the KPIs will describe call center performance metrics.
Why are KPIs and metrics important?
KPIs are important because they assign a numerical value to objectively measure performance. Management and other stakeholders can use the call center metrics to objectively measure performance. Based on current and past performance, goals can be assigned. Managers can make important decisions to design plans to improve or maintain performance. The plans can then be evaluated after their implementation using the same KPIs and metrics.What Are the Top Healthcare Call Center Metrics and KPIs to Track?
1. Agent Turnover Rate
Recruitment and training of agents are generally more expensive than retaining experienced agents. The agent turnover rate is a call center metric that measures the percentage of agents who abandon their position. If this metric is high, it will negatively impact customer satisfaction and overall team morale.2. Percentage of Calls Blocked
If a patient calls a healthcare call center and receives a busy tone, this is considered a blocked call. This KPI measures the percentage of calls that are blocked. A call is typically blocked when there are no agents available to answer and all of the virtual waiting rooms are filled. Learning how to track a call to return a previously blocked call can help turn this metric around.3. Average Waiting Time
This is a KPI that should be kept as small as possible, it measures the average wait time a patient spends on the phone before speaking to an agent. This indicator will help management determine how to schedule agents and the optimal number of agents to maintain on staff. If patients are kept waiting for too long, customer satisfaction will be negatively impacted.4. Average Handle Time
This KPI measures the average amount of time an agent spends on the call helping the patient. This KPI does not necessarily have to be as short as possible as it will depend on the objective of the call. This KPI is related to caller satisfaction but is also used to determine staff performance and the number of callers needed to fulfill the call center’s demand.5. Occupancy Rate
This rate measures the workload vs. capability of the agents. For example, if an agent spends an average of 20 hours per 40-hour workweek on live calls or completing the work derived from the calls, the occupancy rate would be 50%. Call center managers should generally aim for an occupancy rate that is as close to 100% as possible without overwhelming the agents.6. Customer Satisfaction
All KPIs ultimately lead to this global KPI which measures the ultimate goal of making customers happy with the work of the call center. This metric is typically determined by surveying a sample of customers to determine how satisfied or unsatisfied they were by the work of the call center in terms of effectiveness and efficiency. For more information on improving your healthcare call center metrics, read the following: What Can Hospital Call Center Best Practices Tell You About Its Quality?
What Is Medical Digital Marketing?
Our world has gone digital. Unfortunately, many medical practices are lagging behind. Even doctors on the cutting edge of their fields find themselves struggling to understand the scale and scope needed for their digital presence.
Medical digital marketing is perhaps the most complex aspect of all. And it is indispensable. The right approach ensures that you reach patients searching for medical information online and that your message is tailored so that they are receptive to it.
But what is this nebulous “medical digital marketing,” and what does it mean for you? Let’s take a look.
Online Medical Marketing: The Basics
Think about traditional marketing methods: signs outside your place of business, brochures, and radio spots. Online medical marketing takes the spirit behind these approaches—creating a brand and getting your message out—and moves them to the digital sphere. Your sign transforms into your Google My Business page. Your brochures into your website. Your radio spots into social media advertisements. Medical web marketing is fairly similar to marketing for any other type of business, though there are key differences, as you’d expect from any industry. The ultimate goal is to meet patients where they are and reel them in.Why Is Medical Internet Marketing So Important?
It used to be that when people needed a doctor or were interested in a specific procedure, they’d as around for recommendations, or even just go into the phonebook and start calling practices. Now, they hop online to find practices nearby and reviews. The healthcare industry is extremely competitive, and if you really work on your online presence, you will be able to claim a larger share of the market. Plus, all the efforts you make will work to improve your reputation and establish yourself and your practice as an authority.Essential Elements of Digital Medical Marketing
We suggest that all medical practice incorporate the following elements into their digital marketing: • A visually attractive website that is easy to navigate and answers essential questions • Video content that is short, well composed, and engaging • Social media pages on at least three platforms • Mobile marketing • An email list with frequent, relevant content If this sounds like a lot to take on in house, don’t worry; .Guideway Care has you covered. We keep up with the healthcare digital marketing trends and predictions, ensuring your content is always up to date and relevant to your audience.
Best Practices for Healthcare Advertising on Instagram
One of our top 10 healthcare marketing tips in 2020 was to embrace social media. This hasn’t changed in 2021. And one of the best ways to get into social is through healthcare Instagram advertising.
Why Instagram?
For many healthcare companies, bridging the gap between themselves and prospective patients is difficult. We are in an age where people are quite skeptical of medical providers or jaded based on poor experiences. Success on social media relies on your ability to get past that skepticism and connect with people. Instagram is all about the personal connection. Medical Instagram accounts help people see practices as families, and see healthcare as something warm and welcoming. Of course, your success depends upon doing it right.Tips for Instagram Medical Accounts
With any social media effort, you need to engage in best practices. But what are those for Instagram healthcare pages? We suggest the following.Be Personable, Not Personal
Your professional Instagram account should read professional, but warm and accessible. This is very different from the tone of a personal page. While you want patients to feel like they are getting to know you, never forget your professionalism.Use Your Profile Info
Your Instagram business profile should have all the information a patient might need to work with you. This includes your hours, location, phone number, and services you offer. Be sure to set up the contact button as well.Follow Other Healthcare Accounts
You want to become part of the Instagram healthcare community, and part of that is following other accounts. Target those that are in your sphere and don’t be afraid to engage with those accounts. It’s a great way to learn from others.Vary Your Content
A lot of medical practices fall into the trap of creating Instagram medical accounts that are just one infographic after the other. You need to switch up your content if you have any hope of garnering engagement. Some types of posts to include are: • Quick videos explaining relevant topics • Before and after treatment photos (get permission) • Inspirational quotes related to healthcare • Commentary on notable medical news • Explanations of new research• Tips and tricks for wellnessFigure Out Those Hashtags
Finally, one of the only ways to get discovered on Instagram is through hashtags, so make sure you are using the right ones—and verify what they are actually about to avoid embarrassing situations. For more information about the best healthcare advertising practices, contact Guideway Care. Also if you want to know what makes advertising via Instagram so effective. Read on our detailed blog about “Instagram Marketing for Doctors“
5 Important Healthcare Call Center Metrics
When you invest in patient engagement solutions, you want to know that they are doing more than just taking tasks off your hands; you want to feel confident that they work. To evaluate this, you need to know what metrics to look at.
Every industry has different metrics to look at. This means that when evaluating healthcare call center metrics, you won’t be looking at the same things as for an online retailer. So, what should you be keeping an eye on?
5 Essential Call Center Metrics in Healthcare
1. First-Call Resolution:
In any industry, customers get frustrated when they have to call multiple times to resolve an issue. But in the healthcare industry, getting the runaround isn’t just frustrating; it is downright dangerous. Before outsourcing your phone service, make sure the company’s healthcare call center metrics reflect a very high resolution of concerns with the first call.2. Agent Efficiency:
This metric of healthcare call centers measures how quickly agents are able to resolve questions and concerns. Patients don’t want to spend an hour getting an issue taken care of, and depending on the situation, they flat out can’t wait that long. Look for a good average time from answering the phone to call completion.3. Response Time:
We’ve all been there: stuck on hold, waiting for an agent to get on the line. Most of us have a few horror stories about 30-45 minute waits. Once again, this is unacceptable and risky in the medical field. Ensure the companies you consider have solid healthcare call center metrics for response time.4. Customer Satisfaction:
How happy are customers when they get off the phone with a given call center’s agents? Any quality call center should be able to provide data from surveys completed at the end of each call. You want to get as close as you can to every patient being happy with their experience.5. Customer Retention:
This one is harder to measure, but call centers should start their contract by evaluating how well a practice is retaining patients, then reassess this on a regular basis to determine how their work has impacted retention. Are you feeling a bit overwhelmed at the idea of getting and assessing metrics for multiple call center companies? Turn to Guideway Care. We offer a full slate of solutions related to patient engagement and experience that will help you better meet the needs of your clients.
Why Customer Complaints Are Good For Your Business
Patients have always shared their medical practice experiences with friends and family. Now, they share them with the entire world. Patient and customer complaints can easily reach an audience of thousands through your Google My Business page and other sites, such as Yelp.
This can be pretty bad for your practice. However, we also think that—with the right approach—getting and handling customer complaints can ultimately enhance your practice.
There Will Always Be Complaints
First, let’s get this fact out of the way: there is nothing you can do, no approach you can take, that will prevent 100% of patient complaints. There will always be someone who comes in with unrealistic expectations, or who is just having a bad day and decides that Yelp is the place to let off some steam. And, if we are being honest, you too will have bad days where your service just isn’t what you want it to be, and patients will rightly complain about that. But it is important to remember that complaints aren’t just negatives; they are also tools for improving your practice.Complaints Highlight Problems
To be fair, not always. Sometimes, patients are upset about things outside your control. But in many cases, they highlight problems you do have control over. When you listen to feedback, it helps you see things you might otherwise be blind to. They say knowledge is power, and they’re right. The better you understand where your practice is failing, the better you will be at making targeted changes. And in many cases, making these changes and validating the patient can turn them into a dedicated part of your practice. Not quite convinced that complaints are good for growth? Here are a few things to consider. • Complaints Are a Reality Check: It is easy to believe all is well and good if no one is telling you anything different. • Healthcare Call Centers Can Help Manage Them: If you don’t have the bandwidth to process negative feedback directly, you can outsource complaints to a specialized call center. • You Learn About Your Patients: It is easy to assume that since you know your field, you know what patients want and need, but we promise, there are some gaps in your knowledge. • They Open Other Lines of Conversation: Patient engagement solutions can cover a lot, but listening to and validating a complaint will do far more in getting a patient to open up. Ready to make more out of your customer feedback, both positive and negative? Our healthcare internet marketing can help. Contact us to learn more.
What Is Insurance Verification and Eligibility?
As a medical provider, you need to be prepared to work directly with insurance providers to help patients maximize their benefits and cover the cost of treatment. Insurance verification and determining eligibility is central to this. But how do you do insurance verification and navigating the often convoluted water of eligibility? Here is what you should know.
What Is Insurance Verification and Eligibility?
Insurance verification refers to checking the status of a given patient’s insurance coverage as well as verifying their eligibility for having a given service covered. Once you have completed the medical insurance verification process, you should know the following: • If the patient’s policy is active. • When the policy expires. • If you are in-network. • If the given procedure is covered under their benefits. • If it is, how much of it is covered. Insurance verification is one of the first steps to take with any patient and should be done before any services are rendered. If not, you can put the patient in a position where they have to pay out of pocket but don’t have room in their budget to do so.What Is the Insurance Verification Process Like?
This depends on the route you take. The easiest method is to outsource this task to insurance verification services companies. These are HIPAA-compliant providers who contact insurance providers on your behalf using the information the patient provided. If you have clients input this information through the medical patient portal, the entire process requires almost no work on your end. If you don’t outsource it, you will need to contact the insurance company directly. If you are confident that the insurance policy is valid and active, you also might be able to find information online. For this, you look for the specific tier of policy from the given provider and see if there is any information online about coverage and limits. Ultimately, this method is lengthy and difficult, often requiring at least once employee pretty much dedicated to the verification task. We strongly suggest outsourcing this to save both time and money. In fact, we can help. At Guideway Care, we offer a wide variety of services, including healthcare engagement solutions and insurance verification. With us at your side, you can grow your practice, increase productivity, and ensure your patients are always pleased with their experience. To learn more, schedule your free consultation.
The Ultimate Guide to Patient Experience
The patient experience isn’t just about satisfaction; it encompasses all interactions patients have with healthcare as a whole. Unfortunately, patient experience statistics consistently show that that people find these interactions to be lacking.
It is essential that all medical practices have a firm grasp on how to improve patient experience and what experiences matter to patients.