Healthcare has entered an era of consumerism. Consumers are being forced to take on more financial responsibility for their care as employers, government plans and individual health coverage shifts the cost of healthcare to consumers.
As a result, consumers are demanding increased transparency, quality, personalized care and convenience to access and make decisions relating to their health.
Hospitals and health systems must consistently evaluate how to best meet consumer demands. Asking the consumer is a good way to start. Consider conducting follow-up calls after delivery of care, focus groups and utilizing patient and family advisory committees to stay informed on community needs. These person-centered committees help providers understand what is most important to patients and their families and offer guidance on any necessary care delivery changes.
Transparency is required to provide consumers with the information they need to make informed healthcare decisions. Potential patients seek out pricing, specialties, quality, and safety performance details online before ever engaging with a provider. Websites like Physician Compare and Hospital Compare report Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services star ratings on patient satisfaction and quality. Surveys have found that nearly all consumers prefer hospitals with the highest grades for safety, regardless of cost, offering an incentive for physicians and healthcare organizations to perform well on these measures.
Once you earn the consumer’s trust, providing ease of access is critical to get them in the door and retain them as a patient. Conveniences such as online bill pay, evening and weekend hours, check-ups at home through telemedicine and the ability to email providers are important aspects of the patient experience.
Today, consumers are more interested than ever before in seeing a doctor via video. According to a recent American Well/Harris Poll survey, 64 percent of patients say they are willing to consider a video chat with their physician. Several national telehealth companies provide consumers with immediate video doctor visits to assess and diagnose urgent care issues. This type of mobile care delivery opens new lines of communication between patients and their physicians.
Transparency and ease of access are two important components of an organization focused on quality and person-centered care. The following questions serve as a guide for providers to evaluate their efforts to meet these consumer demands:
· Do we consider consumers throughout the care journey (i.e. ease of access, convenience, etc.)?
· Does our hospital utilize a patient and family advisory committee, which includes hospital leadership as well as clinical staff?
· Are we transparent? Can consumers easily access pricing and quality information about our hospital and healthcare providers?
· Are we driving continuous quality improvement efforts with efficient processes and programs focused on consumers?
· How are we addressing telehealth in our community?
· Can we offer any conveniences through mobile health technology such as virtual clinic visits or text reminders?
· Do the specialties we offer meet consumer demands?
In this period of consumerism, person-centered care enables healthcare providers to drive change in quality and process efficiency. To meet patient expectations, organizations must strive for continuous improvement in quality care, safety and timeliness.
Erika Sundrud, MA, MBBLSS, is Principal, Quality, Safety & Performance Improvement at Quorum Health Resources, a hospital professional consulting services firm that works with more than 150 hospitals across the country.
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