Over the past few years, the healthcare industry has experienced a number of shifts in delivering patient care and better health outcomes. Following the pandemic and a cross-industry rise in health-consciousness (such as the rise in supplements and the prioritization of mental and emotional health), patients now hold a different standard when it comes to experiences with their healthcare plans, providers, and products.
Today, patients seek a customer-centric experience that is accessible, empathetic, responsive, and personalized. For healthcare brands, that means that the path to winning and keeping your patients is paved by a vigilant approach to your customer experience. Here are four ways that healthcare brands can create a strategic CX that drives patient experience, growth, and retention.
1. Increase Accessible and Responsive Service
Thanks to the prevalence and increasing demand for digitally driven services, accessible and responsive customer service is now considered table stakes to keeping patients happy. Whether you’re a health plan looking to scale your member processes or a provider that is looking to attract and retain your patient base, developing a solid communication strategy comes down to:
- Having a reliable business process team that can meet patient needs and process requests
- Maintaining several active channels of communication for your patients to reach you, such as a voice call center, live chat, and email.
- Trained agents that can receive sensitive health issues and relay patient needs as quickly and clearly as possible to the appropriate parties
Remember, the patient experience begins before they see a provider. Every related interaction counts towards winning and keeping your patient base.
2. Return to High-Touch, High-Quality Service
In a recent study, only 48% of the surveyed patients were satisfied with their providers’ ability to understand their needs. That makes sense, considering that today, US patients divide their care between four to five different provider networks. Provider networks face incredible business opportunities to create patient experiences that show they want to know their patients and to inspire them to consolidate their services under one plan. That requires a return to high-touch, quality service.
Provider networks face incredible business opportunities to create patient experiences that inspire their patients to consolidate their services under one plan.
Providing a white-glove level of service isn’t just about meeting every customer call. It’s also about maintaining consistent, high-touch communication through each issue, as well as maintaining patient knowledge that allows you to give individualized attention and care when processing sensitive health issues.
Navigating the healthcare system can be challenging for many patients, whether it’s understanding the extent of their coverage, securing a crucial, time-sensitive appointment, or finding access to a medication or provider. When you’re able to show your patients that they’re a priority, you open the doors to new levels of trust, growth, and retention.
3. Utilize Automation and AI to Optimize
Today, expanding your patient base requires an understanding that goes beyond surface-level insights. With increasing competition and patient expectations, creating a patient-centric experience means tapping into a deep understanding of their needs.
That’s where customer data comes into play. Gathering and processing patient data into actionable insights is the keystone to improving your service and driving personalized experiences.
However, there’s no doubt that retrieving raw customer interaction data is a massive undertaking. Healthcare brands can rely on automation and AI processes to analyze and structure patient data, allowing them to:
- Increase agent engagement and success.
- Integrate personalized service based on patient needs, preferences, and agent feedback.
- Identify trends and opportunities based on keywords, handling time, churn rate, and more.
Ultimately, the goal of utilizing automation and AI is to help you find new ways to connect with your patients.
4. Lean into a Human-Centered BPO for Patient Growth, Experience, and Retention
84% of patients say that their patient experience is one of the most important factors when selecting a provider. More healthcare brands are realizing that the customer experience is deeply connected to your growing and retaining their patient base. How patients perceive and feel about every interaction is crucial to promoting better business and health outcomes.
Looking into the future, plans and providers need more than just a customer service team or partner. Creating a positive patient experience comes down to strategy, constant optimization, and a dedication to providing human-centered, superior service.
Stay on Top of Your CX Strategy
Patient expectations are always evolving. At RUI, we know that providing the best patient experience involves constant research, implementation, and optimization. That’s why we’re here to be your guide every step of the way.
If you’re ready to level up your custom experience strategy, connect with us today!
