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Increasing patient engagement
Increasing patient engagement is the cornerstone to building a credible practice and improving healthcare outcomes. It means opening doors to more word-of-mouth referrals, better patient retention rates, improved patient satisfaction, increased revenue, enhanced online reputation, and better health outcomes.
Interesting fact → A patient who is actively engaged with their provider, their health concerns, and their treatment plan will meet their healthcare needs 3X faster than a patient who is not engaged.
Whether it is prior to the visit, during the visit, or post-visit; you must know how to engage with your patients at every stage of the patient journey. Engaging effectively with your patients will help you improve the patient’s confidence in your practice, boost your online reputation, and facilitate patient-centered care.
But how exactly do you increase patient engagement? What best practices should you implement to provide your patients with a positive experience? This article will cover some actionable strategies for you to amp up your patient engagement game. Get ready to take some notes!
15+ actionable strategies for increasing patient engagement
Improving patient engagement means understanding the health needs of the patient, formulating a tailored and personalized treatment plan for them, and keeping track of their progress. It is a process that begins at appointment booking and ends at panel management.
The advent of medical communication solutions and their ability to streamline doctor-patient communication has significantly changed the way patients engage with healthcare professionals. The technological revolution in healthcare has opened many avenues for healthcare professionals to connect and engage with their patients in the best way possible. As a healthcare professional, here are some strategies you can implement to drive patient engagement and deliver better outcomes.
Increasing patient engagement prior to the visit
Did you know that patient engagement begins way before a patient sets foot into your practice?
Being able to reach out to them effectively, ensuring smooth enrolment, communication, and capturing information effectively shows that you care. Here’s how you can improve patient engagement before the patient visits you:
Make it easy for patients to self-schedule appointments
Making the appointment scheduling process easy and seamless is the first step towards engaging with your patients. Digitize the process of scheduling appointments for your patients, whether it is through a website, a patient portal, or text messaging. When you ask patients to schedule their own appointments, you’re basically freeing up around 4+ hours of time for your front desk. You can improve the efficiency of your team, reduce no-shows, and increase revenue when you digitize this process of scheduling appointments.
Around 73% of patients prefer scheduling appointments on their own. So why not make it less of a hassle for both your front desk and your patients?
This helps both you and your patients as they can schedule appointments in real-time at their own convenience. They no longer need to call the practice during working hours or wait on call while the staff schedules an appointment for them.
Send appointment confirmation texts
Appointment confirmation texts are as important as appointment reminders as they help you keep your schedules full, stay on top of your appointments, and ultimately enhance patient experience and engagement.
Here’s an example of an appointment confirmation text:
“Hey, Anna! This is a reminder for your upcoming appointment on <Day, date> at <time>. Please type C to confirm or R to reschedule.”
Here’s what would happen if you don’t send a confirmation text to Anna:
- There’s a possibility that she would forget about her appointment and end up getting frustrated
- A missed appointment would mean an empty slot and hence lost revenue
- Anna might not recommend you to her friends or family as you were not proactive with her appointment booking and confirmation process
- A communication gap from your end would put you in a negative light and affect your image
You can avoid all of this by sending automated appointment confirmation texts that would keep your schedules full and avoid any losses in revenue.
While sending confirmation texts, make sure that the process of confirming appointments is smooth for the patients. It could be as simple as ‘Type ‘C’ to confirm’. When your patients confirm their appointments, you can send them appointment reminders to ensure that they do not forget.
Share best practices
Imagine you have a patient who has scheduled an appointment because they were suffering from a toothache. Since they scheduled the appointment at night, they couldn’t visit you at that time. Naturally, because of the toothache, they would have difficulty getting through the night. However, from your end, you must assure that the patient doesn’t have to deal with that pain. The treatment should begin even before the patient visits you, by offering immediate care.
Even if their appointment is scheduled for the next day, the best you can do is ask the patient how they’re feeling and give them a painkiller to help ease out the pain and discomfort. The rest of the diagnosis can be done when the patient visits you. Such best practices show that you care about the patient and are there for them even before the appointment. Engaging with patients at this stage is what will make you stand apart from other providers and will enhance doctor-patient relations.
Share intake forms online
A patient intake form is used by healthcare practices to gather important information about the patient. It contains their contact details, insurance information, allergies, medications, medical history, and other relevant information.
Fun fact: Digital patient intake forms reduce the patient’s wait time by 40%.
Doctors use this form to acquire a comprehensive understanding of the patient’s overall health issues. On the basis of this information, they make informed decisions with respect to the diagnosis and treatment.
If you ask your patients to fill out intake forms 15 minutes before the appointment, it wouldn’t give you the time you need to assess their health profile. Instead, send the patient intake form to them online so that they can fill at their own convenience and send it to you way before the appointment. This will allow you to understand their concerns in a better way and be prepared for their visits. Just send the link to the intake form to your patients online via text. Make sure that the form isn’t too extensive and includes as many objective questions as possible.
Send appointment reminders
Appointment reminders are a great way to engage your patients.
Did you know that one-third of patients skip their appointments because they simply forgot about it?
Appointment reminders are a gentle nudge to the patients that encourage them to show up on the set date and time. Appointment reminders help you optimize your schedules and keep them full, thereby avoiding the possibility of no-shows. If appointment reminders are automated, they help you improve patient satisfaction, increase patient retention, lessen the chances of cancellations, and see a 30% increase in revenue.
Increasing patient engagement during the visit
Now that the patient shows up for the appointment, it is time to make sure they’re engaged effectively. Here are some easy practices you can implement:
Understand the issue in detail
Being a good listener is one of the key prerequisites for doctor-patient communication and improving patient engagement. As a healthcare professional, it is your responsibility to make sure that the patient clearly communicates their health concerns to you. For instance, if the patient tells you that they’re allergic to certain medications, you’d make sure to prescribe some other medication that aligns well with your treatment plan.
If the patient isn’t sharing everything then ask them questions that prompt them to answer. Have a list of questions ready and make them aware that you need to get a clear picture of your health status to be able to offer the best treatment possible. Showing interest in their past and present health conditions will make them trust you and will further help you create a tailored treatment plan.
Engage in shared decision-making
When your patient visits you for their appointment, make sure that the patient also understands the diagnosis and the treatment process. Share your thought process while recommending a certain treatment; why it is important, for how long it will be performed, and what benefits it brings along.
Considering that over 50% of patients neglect their health plans, it is important for you as a provider to make them understand how the treatment will improve their quality of life. Also, make sure to obtain their written consent before you proceed with any treatment. This combined effort will further improve the health outcomes of the patient.
Communicate your thought process
Communication is key to establishing a strong bond with your patient. The moment a patient books an appointment, they put their trust in you and expect that you’ll provide a solution to their problems. As a healthcare professional, it is your duty to ensure that the diagnosis you perform and the treatment you suggest are easy to comprehend for your patient.
Do not impose your decision on your patient. Rather, try to communicate your thoughts in a simple manner. Avoid using jargon, and if required, explain things through charts, diagrams, etc. Urge your patients to ask questions and clear their doubts. Only if you communicate clearly, will you be able to avoid misunderstandings and strengthen the belief of your patient in you.
Make it super easy to schedule follow-up appointments
When you have done a diagnosis of the patient’s condition and have given an initial treatment plan during the appointment, make sure that the patient doesn’t feel overwhelmed while booking a follow-up appointment. Use SMS to send links for easy appointment booking or ask them to message you if they wish to book a follow-up appointment.
You can simply send a message saying:
“Hey, Phil! I hope you are feeling better. It’s time for a follow-up appointment! Please book the same by clicking on this <link>.” Easing out such processes is one of the key elements to increasing patient engagement.
Suggest involvement in support groups
While some patients are comfortable dealing with their health all by themselves and reading related educational material, others feel better by engaging in support groups. A support group is simply a community of people who are facing the same challenges with respect to their health and they get together or sync on platforms like Facebook to share their experiences
As a provider, you can suggest some support groups, offline or online depending on the patient’s preference. Being a part of such support groups will help the patient deal with the stress they have due to their health condition. It will make them feel empowered and improve their overall well-being.
Interesting fact: One of our customers, a chiropractor created a dedicated support group on Facebook for their patients and as a result, saw the patient engagement, satisfaction, and retention rates go up.
Increasing patient engagement post-visit
Continuing patient engagement is crucial beyond their office visits. By consistently valuing and engaging with patients throughout their treatment, you increase the likelihood of them returning for future concerns and recommending your services to friends and family.
Here are some best practices for increasing patient engagement post-visit:
Ensure two-way communication
Increasing patient engagement requires the active involvement of both the patient and the provider. Two-way communication via text is a great way to initiate and maintain the same. Via such communication, you can answer questions on the fly. Your patient wouldn’t have to wait for your clinic to open the next day to ask you their queries. They can simply text you and clear their doubts. Make it easier or them to reach out to you if they need anything. This accessibility is important as it makes the patient feel that you’re there for them whenever they need you. This further improves patient satisfaction.
Send medication reminders
Another great way to engage with your patients is to constantly remind them to take their medicines on time and also ask them to collect their medication refills.
Fun fact: 42% of patients are more likely to adhere to their treatment plans if being sent reminders.
Here are some examples:
“Hey, Brian! This is to remind you that your prescription refill is ready for collection. Please stop by the clinic tomorrow and our Front Desk will provide you with the medicines.”
“Hey, Paula! I hope you’re feeling better. Please make sure to take your medications on time: <Medicine 1> 30 minutes prior to your meals and <Medicine 2> after meals. Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions. Wishing you a speedy recovery!”
Did you know that according to a study, SMS is an effective means of sending medication reminders, decreasing the chances of delayed or missed doses by 46 percent? Your patients might not be too proactive with respect to taking their medicines, and this little nudge from your end will definitely motivate them to take their health seriously and get better.
Patient Surveys
How will you figure out if your patient has had a positive experience at your practice? Simple: by patient surveys or feedback forms. Ask your patients to assess your practice on the basis of the ease of booking appointments, the wait time, the cleanliness and hygiene, quality of care, and communication. Ask your patients to rate your practice on a scale of 1 to 10 based on all these parameters.
Here the key is to make the survey or feedback form as short and as easy as possible. If the survey is too extensive, your patient will get frustrated and might end up not filling it at all! You can simply message the customer saying:
“Hey Phil! Thank you for visiting <Place>. Would you please take out two minutes to fill out this survey and share your feedback? Please click on the link below.”
Here are some sample patient survey questions you can ask:
- Did your healthcare provider explain the issues to you?
- Did your healthcare provider answer all your questions?
- Are you satisfied with the overall experience?
- How would you rate the physical location of the facility?
- How would you rate the cleanliness and hygiene of the facility?
- How would you rate the quality of meals served at the cafeteria/wards?
- How would you rate the parking service?
- How would you rate the infrastructure?
- Did you feel your safety, privacy, and comfort were taken care of during your visit?
- How likely are you to recommend the facility to your friends and family?
- How would you rate your overall experience at the facility?
When you use surveys or feedback forms, your customers feel that their opinions are being valued, as a result of which, they feel more engaged.
Panel management
To ensure strategic patient engagement and streamline operations, you need to focus on panel management. It is a means to provide continued care even to your patients. As a provider, you must leverage the right channel to provide care. Out of all channels of communication, text messaging is the most effective, owing to the high open and response rates of text messages. Panel management via texting includes obtaining the patient’s consent, evaluating the status of the patient and implementing the right call to action, attending to the patient’s needs, distributing educational materials, and requesting payments.
Share educational material
Keeping your patients informed about their condition is another great patient engagement strategy that you must implement. It is always a great idea to send your patients some educational material that gives them a better understanding of their health condition and how it can be improved.
For example, if you’re a dentist, you can share educational material pertaining to certain best practices for maintaining good oral health. Such things make the patients feel motivated and valued and further contribute to their overall well-being. Make use of SMS to share articles, videos, and other interesting educational material that propels them to make an effort to improve their health, instead of solely depending on you.
Impact of increased patient engagement
More Patient reviews
Did you know that nearly 84% of patients check the reviews left by your past patients before they make a decision to visit you?
That’s the kind of impact patient reviews can have. When your patients are engaged and satisfied with the treatment they received, they wouldn’t mind leaving a review. You can send a message saying:
“Hey, Emily! Thanks for choosing us. Would you please take out two minutes to leave us a review? Please click on the link below.”
They can simply leave a star rating and a small review describing their overall experience. Each review will have a significant impact on your practice’s online reputation. While positive reviews will help you attract more patients, negative reviews can harm the online reputation of your practice.
Word-of-mouth referrals
When patients have a satisfactory experience wherein their healthcare needs are met, their concerns resolved, and their health outcomes improved; they’d trust you with their healthcare needs in the future.
Not only that, but they’d recommend you to their friends and family and put in a good word about the kind of care you provide. Enhanced patient engagement leads to patient loyalty, which further leads to multiplied word-of-mouth referrals, more patients, and higher revenue.
You can trigger such referrals by providing exceptional care, networking with other providers in case of providing referrals for doctors, and creating incentivized campaigns. You can give gift cards to your patients if they refer you to their family members or friends, and even offer family discounts.
Recall and reactivation
Patient recall and reactivation is an important part of engaging patients as it helps promote ongoing preventive care, improves communication and relationship between doctors and patients, and enhances the health outcomes of the patients.
When you offer exceptional care to your patients and engage them effectively, you leave a lasting impression on their minds. So after six months or a year after providing treatment, if you send a message for a routine checkup, they’d definitely come back to you.
An effort made towards reactivating old patients leads to revenue growth, increases patient retention rates, reduces patient acquisition costs, keeps schedules full, improves patient loyalty, and increases patient volume.
Apart from the above improved patient engagement has a direct impact on your revenues, patient satisfaction, and retention, and above all drastically improves patient health outcomes.
Automate patient engagement with Emitrr’s advanced texting capabilities
Improving patient engagement is not difficult if you have the right tools and strategies under your belt. Emitrr integrates seamlessly with your EHR and can automate the entire customer journey, thereby enabling you to provide excellent care and increase patient engagement.
From sending automated reminders to requesting reviews, from sending promotional messages to scheduling text messages; you can automate a lot of tasks at your medical office, thereby saving 4+ hours of time for your receptionist daily. Here are a couple of ways you can use Emitrr to engage your patients:
- Emitrr offers Real Time Online Scheduling capability that allows patients to schedule their own appointments. With this feature, you can free up hours’ worth of time for your receptionist. The patient can easily schedule their appointment via the website or a link that you send them via text. You can even customize this feature based on the insurance details, visit type, location, or provider; thereby reducing the burden on your staff.
- Emitrr allows you to send appointment confirmations based on the type of visit, the customer, and the status of the appointment. All you need to do is create a text message campaign, add the list of patients, type your message, or choose from the list of templates, and hit send! You can either send the message immediately or schedule it for a later date.
- With Emitrr’s appointment reminders, you can reduce patient no-shows by 90%. You can also set the cadence for sending reminders, choose from a variety of templates available, and personalize the messages. Moreover, you can track the status of your appointments and send follow-up messages to customers who haven’t confirmed.
- You can automate the entire process of generating reviews through Emitrr and grow your reviews by 10X, by setting up automated review requests as soon as a patient is done with their consultation. You can decide the channel and cadence and can respond to reviews from one dashboard. Lastly, you can track detailed reputation metrics pertaining to your review requests and responses.
- Emitrr allows you to streamline patient surveys by setting up automated texts and emails. Also, you get access to survey form templates that you can customize, download, and share with your patients.
- You can automate the entire recall and reactivation process by utilizing Emitrr’s advanced texting capabilities. All you need to do is out a list of all your patients who have received services from you in the past year and create a campaign to make them visit your practice.
- You can simply send broadcast text messages to your patients sharing offers and discounts to urge them to visit you. However, make sure you include an option to opt out if your patients do not wish to receive marketing communications.
Conclusion
To boost patient engagement, understanding the patient journey and actively participating in it is vital. From the moment a patient arrives at your facility till they leave, you should take a proactive approach in each stage. This means staying involved in every step of their journey, from scheduling appointments to receiving feedback. Keeping patients engaged throughout each interaction is crucial for providing excellent care and building strong doctor-patient relationships.
If you are looking forward to increasing patient engagement at your practice, implement the aforementioned strategies without burning a hole in your pocket! Book a demo to explore what Emitrr has in store for you!
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