Over the holidays, some of the most popular gifts were home assistants like the Amazon Echo and Google Home. At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January, there were demonstrations of how a tool like the Amazon Echo could cross-over from playing music and recipes to helping with healthcare. Imagine being able to ask Alexa about your medications or labs.
Amazon and Google have both talked about disrupting healthcare and bringing a better consumer experience to patients. But being able to ask Alexa what your lab results were is still pretty far off. However, the potential for consumer products to change the way patients interact with healthcare providers is being seen in some other technologies. Namely, text messaging.
Text messaging is poised to take center stage in 2018 as a major player in improving the patient experience, collaboration, and communication between patients and providers. There is an evolution happening that is moving communication from more complex messaging that requires logins, to more traditional text messaging that looks and feels like what patients use in their everyday lives.
It’s not surprising that studies are finding this is the kind of engagement patients want. It fits into their lives. In fact, 76 percent of younger patients think that text messages are more convenient than phone calls, which is probably why 98 percent of text messages are read—and most within 15 minutes. The response rate for texts is also much higher. One study suggested it is 200 percent higher than the response rate for phone calls.
These feelings about convenience around text messaging carry over into healthcare. A 2017 survey about the patient-provider relationship found that 79 percent of patients want to receive text messages from their healthcare providers, and 73 percent would like to be able to send text messages to their providers.
The new healthcare text messaging can be both automated—like reminders and recare notices—and two-way, real-time for things like a quick note asking for instructions. Patients can respond to messages and use emojis or send images like a shot of their new insurance card. Patients can initiate messages to ask a question like, “Can you get me in today?” or “Am I supposed to fast for my appointment tomorrow?”
Today, a practice can text-enable their landline so patients don’t need to learn a new number. When the practice texts a patient, the patient sees their doctor’s number and name pop up if it is in their phone. Patients can initiate texts to the landline and the practice can see who is texting thanks to integration with the practice management system and/or electronic health record software. Anyone in the practice can also see the entire message history so there is no need to ask patients to repeat information.
Text messaging isn’t just more convenient for patients. It saves time for staff and improves efficiency in the office. Text messages are much faster than phone calls and can be handled quickly when staff are free. Each text message takes about four seconds versus at least two minutes for a call. Scheduling calls takes even longer. The latest data suggests scheduling takes an average of eight minutes. But what if patients could text in a request and coordinate quickly via a few short text messages?
Texting is also quickly becoming a more effective tool for reducing no-shows and filling open appointments. Since text messages are more likely to be read and responded to, practices that offer text reminders are more likely to get a confirmation. When patients cancel or reschedule, a quick group text can be sent out to patients on the waiting list to fill that spot. All of this can be done without disrupting the patient experience for those who are in the office.
Ultimately, real-time two-way text messaging offers a consumer-driven experience that is much more convenient for both patients and staff. And, it is an experience that is available today.