Your patient intake experience will be the first interaction with new patients, and the lasting impression with returning patients.
For healthcare providers focused on growth and retention, the importance of your patient intake process cannot be exaggerated. Best practices and efficiencies that can reduce costs, wait times and data errors while increasing productivity and staff satisfaction are just some of the top level benefits.
When viewed from the perspective of a new or returning patient, these same process efficiencies can also improve the customer and patient experience. Patient intake should be as frictionless and consistent as possible, and it should never feel like an administrative burden or a redundant waste of time for everyone involved.
Acute Care vs. Your Patient Intake Experience
Assuming most healthcare providers are cost conscious and running as operationally lean as possible, your patient intake process is likely modeled around the current size and needs of the group.
It’s also likely that the intake process currently in practice is a patient portal and electronic records system that is optimally designed for appointments that can be scheduled in advance––i.e., chronic care management, annual physicals, wellness visits, elective surgeries, etc.
The bad news: The customer and patient experience associated with your patient intake process, along with operational integrity, will be continuously tested by life’s episodic events and the need for acute care… and everything that follows.
Accessibility, wait times, digital interoperability and (staff) communications are some of the most common problems healthcare customers face when trying to engage with providers for acute care. A new patient is more likely to look elsewhere if they need to, and 60%+ of current patients are willing to change providers or ‘leak out’ for a better experience.
The good news: While these problems may seem common to providers, they are not all equal in the eyes of healthcare consumers. If you are conducting surveys to identify the pain in your patient intake process, you should ask the right question(s) based on segmentation and the unique perspectives of your primary healthcare customers. For example:
Seniors
The need and consumer demand for acute (and chronic) care options among the 60+ demographic is greater than ever.
The patient intake experience needs to reduce confusion and uncertainty.
Millennials
As the largest population of healthcare consumers (80 million), young Americans want acute care with transparency, convenience and anytime accessibility.
The intake process needs to be digital and user friendly, with options.
Caregivers
Over 40 million Americans are assisting with healthcare choices and providing unpaid care to family members with a disability or illness.
The intake process for acute care requires clear information in verbal, written and digital formats.
Language & Health Literacy
Only 12% of Americans are considered health literate, and Spanish is the second most common language in the US.
The intake process for acute care should identify preferred language and offer FAQs.
The Solution
These four segments represent some of the largest populations of healthcare consumers, and your patient intake process should address your primary audience(s), or all of them. Gaining a better understanding of the needs and preferences of your primary audience, and some of the common themes, will help identify gaps and prioritize areas for improvement
The business strategies that are in line with your vision will help determine the methods and tactics needed to achieve your goals. From the perspective of the business, an example of strategic initiatives to improve your patient intake process could include the following:
- Implement an EHR integrated digital intake tool.
- Improve communications, appointment confirmations and reminders.
- Reduce no-shows, schedule gaps and empty slots.
From the perspective of your patient, these same strategic improvements to your intake process should also provide a better experience:
- Patients have adopted digital intake and devices, which can also present opportunities.
- Busy people appreciate self-scheduling and effective communication.
- People prefer same-day appointments and being treated like a priority.
Our Patient Intake Program
The HealthX Group offers a Patient Intake Program to examine your current process and provide the strategy, solutions, implementation and training to improve the intake experience from the daily efforts of your staff and the interactions with your patients.
If you would like to boost profitability and efficiencies with your intake process, while also improving your customer and patient experience, please contact us at [email protected]