The ‘survival case’ for modernizing healthcare consumer experiences

Health systems and health plans are under more pressure than ever to modernize and transform the consumer experience (CX). 

“Patients now expect to seek out, receive and pay for healthcare remotely and have a seamless experience like the retail sector,” said Paul Sonnier, Industry Principal at Frost & Sullivan.

One of the barriers to seamless healthcare experiences is that electronic health records (EHRs) weren’t built for consumers. EHRs were built for administrators and clinicians, so they can’t adequately support a compelling CX. Investing in a variety of patient portals and point solutions has only muddied the experience more, leading to confusion and poor consumer engagement. 

“People have tried to solve the digital front door in pieces and parts. It’s all this fragmentation that exists in our world today. So now you’re seeing the move toward platforms,” said Patrick Drewry, VP of Patient Engagement at Change Healthcare. 

Naomi Adams, SVP of Customer Strategy and Solutions Engineering at League, said platforms establish “one place where an individual can access all of the point solutions, all of the services and all of the care.”

Sonnier, Drewry and Adams were joined by Rishi Pathak, MD, Global Director of Healthcare and Life Sciences at Frost & Sullivan, and José Valdés, Senior Director of Alliances at Castlight Health, during Frost & Sullivan’s Think Tank event on digital front door platforms in healthcare. 

The Think Tank took place as many health plans and health systems are at a critical juncture: the business value of platforms is becoming clear, as are the negative implications of not undertaking digital transformation. 

To improve healthcare CX for the modern era and begin innovating to prepare for the future, healthcare organizations must:

• Meet members and patients where they are
• Personalize and automate consumer experiences
• Establish key metrics for measuring ROI

Meet members and patients where they are

The pandemic forced people to manage their health in primarily virtual ways. As a result, consumers expect their healthcare to meet them wherever they are, and they want their health information to be accessible. In fact, 80% of consumers will switch healthcare providers for convenience factors alone.

Patient and member convenience is at the core of digital front door platforms. The benefits of these solutions, according to Drewry, are centralization and connectivity. Dr. Rishi stated that a “digital front door begins where consumers start their search for care,” as this is where organizations often begin interacting with individuals.

“We see that patient expectations for quick, convenient, transparent, connected and responsible care services are redefining how they are engaging with their healthcare providers at each stage of the care journey,” Dr. Rishi said. “The digital front door has become the primary access point for people to find healthcare, understand their options and also provide feedback on their experience.” 

Personalize and automate consumer experiences

Effective platforms integrate point solutions and aggregate data sources to enable real-time insights that drive personalized next best actions, helping individuals proactively manage their health. 

“Data becomes extremely important for that personalization to occur,” Valdés said. 

In many cases, personalized health experiences experiences double as automation techniques. “You can actually think about these investments as a way of extending your staff and helping your staff operate top-of-license because the patients are doing some of the tasks for you,” Drewry said. 

Drewry cited payment collections as an example, explaining that patients are “the third largest payer for providers but only reimburse about 30% of their total financial obligation.” Surprise billing and confusion about what they owe are among the reasons people often don’t settle outstanding medical debts. Leveraging a digital front door to personalize outreach, however, can inform individuals about their out-of-pocket expenses and payment options. 

“There’s a staffing crisis. What you don’t often realize is some of these digital front door offerings are a form of automation” Drewry said.

Establish key metrics for measuring ROI

Executives leading CX initiatives need to identify metrics that determine if they’re “driving the right behaviors that ultimately impact the bottom line of the business,” Adams said. 

Leading metrics include consumer engagement, member or patient satisfaction, spend reduction, no show rates, appointment cancellations and collections. 

A retail pharmacy looking to drive in-store traffic, for example, found that consumers who engaged in the wellness-oriented aspects of their digital front door are 4x more likely to seek and book in-person care services through the platform, according to data compiled by League.

What’s next: innovate now for long-term success

As digital front door adoption accelerates in healthcare, organizations that undergo this transformation create the foundation for future growth. Success will require understanding where and when to engage consumers; delivering personalized experiences; and measuring investments appropriately.  

The risk of not taking action today is that consumers will go elsewhere for more convenient, more accessible healthcare services. New market entrants and fast-moving competitors understand this very well. 

“Without a digital front door solution that’s really addressing the needs of the customer, organizations will be left behind, and they will lose patients and members,” Adams said. “There’s no going back. Complacency will be a challenge for healthcare organizations that do not start innovating today to set up for the long term.”