Medical professionals, healthcare facilities, and other health agencies know the importance of patient participation in attaining health goals. However, many face threats due to the rapidly changing healthcare landscape due to emerging life-threatening diseases. In addition, security risks associated with cybercriminals stealing patient health information are also rampant. Hence, it’s crucial to establish trust and rapport by improving patient engagement.
Healthcare providers should create meaningful activities and programs to keep patients happy and confident with the quality of service they deliver. One way to do this is by utilizing VA.care Virtual Assistants for Healthcare. This innovative technology provides a personalized approach to healthcare, allowing patients to communicate with their healthcare providers quickly and easily. This article explains the different ways to improve patient engagement.
- Deploying A Virtual Medical Receptionist
Virtual solutions are widely used nowadays, including in the healthcare industry. Advancement in digital technology makes it possible for doctors, dentists, and other healthcare providers to deploy virtual medical receptionists to handle patient queries, appointments, and other related tasks.
Here’s how a virtual medical receptionist can help in improving patient engagement:
- Promote Positive Clinic Experience
Virtual medical receptionists are virtual assistants who perform the roles of medical receptionists, promoting a positive patient experience. Hiring a virtual medical receptionist ensures that someone can schedule check-ups, communicate urgent requests, validate insurance information, and greet and welcome patients when they visit a clinic.
- Promote Utmost Patient Convenience
Virtual medical receptionists serve as reliable front-desk staff, streamlining patient care services from their starting point of clinic contact. In addition, they help provide excellent services, such as confirming schedules and answering calls promptly, to promote the utmost convenience for patients and increase appointments. Undoubtedly, a virtual medical receptionist from Mountain Mover or any other reputable tech solution provider can help boost patient engagement.
- Using Telehealth Apps
Telemedicine or telehealth apps or platforms help promote patient convenience and overall quality of healthcare services. Advances in telehealth allow doctors and patients to discuss health-related concerns over the internet, eliminating the need for commuting or setting up physical clinic appointments.
Telemedicine apps have a user profile dashboard that displays the patient’s information, such as the name, address, gender, contact information, photo, and more. It also includes the clinic visit history and scheduled appointments for seamless data access, tracking, and accurate patient updates.
With telehealth services, doctors can ask how their patients are at home. This simple gesture can often make patients feel valued and taken care of despite the distance or other circumstances that restrict them from visiting the clinic. Therefore, the capabilities of telehealth apps can help improve patient communication and engagement.
The key features of telemedicine apps generally include the following:
- Health Services Panel: This part of a telehealth app shows the patient’s health condition, family health history, payment methods, patient activity, and other services that the patient receives.
- Geolocation: This feature helps patients find nearby pharmacies, clinics, and hospitals with clear directions and the estimated arrival time.
- Communication Methods: Telehealth apps ensure real-time communication through different channels, such as in-app calling, chat, and live video sessions.
- Electronic Medical Records: Healthcare professionals can integrate EMR to ensure software usability, service accessibility, and flexible workflows.
- Other Features: Telemedicine apps also have remote patient monitoring, symptom checker, and medication tracker. These features inform patients when they can pick up electronically prescribed medications at the pharmacy.
- Providing Comprehensive Patient Education
Patients expect their doctors to provide them with helpful information, such as medication administration tips and helpful lifestyle reminders, to help improve their quality of life and recover fast. Therefore, providing comprehensive patient education is a must to help boost engagement and treatment compliance.
Healthcare professionals must provide adequate and accurate information to improve patient compliance in terms of the following:
- Prognosis: The doctor should relay the possible outcomes and course of the disease to the patient, including the signs, symptoms, and complications.
- Diagnosis: Doctors must explain the diagnosis to patients in easy-to-understand terms.
- Treatment Options: Healthcare professionals should explain the different medical intervention options available for the patient, such as conventional and surgical treatments.
- Implementing Continuous Patient Care
Effective engagement strategies include continuous interaction with patients all year round. There can be possible remissions or recurrence of signs and symptoms. Therefore, healthcare professionals should develop a workflow to follow up with patients.
For instance, psychiatrists should follow up on the medication compliance of patients with anxiety or depression every week. The same is true for those undergoing detoxification and rehabilitation to help avoid relapse and improve their overall health and well-being.
Conclusion
The patient engagement tips above make patients feel more valued, safe, and comfortable. As a result, they become more receptive to recommended treatments and willingly participate in all aspects of care. In addition, incorporating technological solutions, a holistic care approach, and other proven-effective engagement tactics promote better collaboration and medical care management for faster patient recovery.
