Kyruus Blog

As we discussed in the first blog of our series, How to Increase Awareness of and Access to Virtual Care, virtual care has seen a surge in adoption since the onset of the pandemic earlier this year. While it is very important for healthcare organizations to look for ways to market these services and ensure access to information about which providers deliver care virtually, it is just as important to look at the experiences patients are having with virtual care.

Prior to this year, the majority of healthcare consumers had little experience with virtual care. Now, just six months later, most health systems are utilizing virtual care offerings as a way to enable access to care for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, according to our newest research report, Patient Perspectives on Virtual Care, 72% of patients had their first-ever virtual care visit this year. While initial reports indicate that the utilization of virtual care offerings has skyrocketed, what does the experience look like? How are patients finding out about and accessing these virtual care offerings?

Since the COVID-19 virus emerged in the U.S., the country’s health systems and hospitals have felt a significant strain on their resources and staff as they continue to face rising volumes of patients. Amid this chaos, many organizations have risen to the challenge, using technology to expand access and relieve some of the pressure on their limited resources. Here are some of the ways health systems are using technology to expand access to care during the pandemic:

In a previous blog post, we looked at how outdated provider directories can negatively impact patient access. This post explores the importance of effective provider data management and accurate provider directories in streamlining key operational processes across a health system.

This is the third post in our Call Center Patient Experience Series. Over the course of this three post series, we’ve explored some of the top barriers to patient access through health system call centers and how they impede a positive patient experience: outdated provider directories, limited patient-provider matching capabilities, and lack of visibility into provider availability.

This is the second post in our Call Center Patient Experience Series. Over the course of this three post series, we’ll explore some of the top barriers to patient access through health system call centers and how they impede a positive patient experience: outdated provider directories, lack of patient-provider matching capabilities, and insight into provider availability.

Last week, members of our team attended the Becker’s Annual Meeting in Chicago and had the opportunity to hear from health system executives and other industry leaders about the challenges they face and the opportunities they see around the evolving healthcare landscape. Across sessions, discussions focused on the ways in which health systems are rethinking patient engagement strategies and innovating to better meet the needs of today’s healthcare consumers. In particular, the following emerged as key themes:

As we explored in an earlier blog, hospitals and health systems are struggling to deliver a great patient experience through their call centers – often the “front door” to their organization – due in large part to barriers to patient access. Over the course of a three post series, we’ll explore some of these top barriers and how they impede a positive patient experience: outdated provider directories, lack of patient-provider matching capabilities, and insight into provider availability.

Provider Directories & Patient Access

While demand for online self-service capabilities continues to rise, many patients still connect with a health system the old-fashioned way – over the phone. However, access centers frequently lack the resources to provide an effective, high-touch patient experience. In fact, our recent secret shopper report found that 82% of call centers were unable to book an appointment directly over the phone during the initial interaction. That’s not just a major barrier to patient access, it also means that most call centers are not equipped to deliver a call center experience that ends with a booked appointment, a big problem for converting demand and retaining patients in increasingly competitive markets.

The Clinical Summit is a new addition to the ATLAS program this year! Tell us more about it:

I am so pleased and excited to have the inaugural Clinical Summit precede ATLAS this year. The Summit has been designed as a forum to discuss some of the broader issues and necessary associated change management initiatives being navigated by clinical leaders in today’s healthcare landscape. It’s also a great opportunity for attendees to learn from one another, exchange ideas, and come away with both strategic and tactical insights that can be applied at their own organizations. We’ll hear from a variety of experts, from organizations both large and small, and learn from their experiences about what has worked, what hasn’t, and how they are continuing to drive towards success at their institutions.

Historically, healthcare providers have relied heavily on word of mouth to attract new patients. In many ways, this channel is still reliable as 50% of consumers report “friends and family” as their top resource for researching providers. But study after study has shown that healthcare consumers are spending more time online—from patient portals, to online appointment scheduling and health data tracking on mobile apps. Even when they do consult family members about a provider, many still go online to exercise due diligence, so it’s critical for health systems to differentiate themselves online.