Gartner insights on digital front door solutions for providers

Recently released, the 2022 Gartner® Hype Cycle™ for Healthcare Providers details technologies that will significantly change and benefit provider organizations. Specifically, it focuses on technologies that improve real-time visibility of patients and the ability to effectively orchestrate patient care. 

The report lists digital front door technology as a transformational innovation for healthcare providers and recognizes League as a Digital Front Door Sample Vendor. Gartner acknowledges that the consumer demand for digital healthcare experiences has led to numerous “independent digital interactions that do not support a cohesive patient journey.”

The digital front door “solves for this issue by spanning a wide range of digital touchpoints to link these interactions and orchestrate comprehensive health journeys for patients across diagnosis, treatment and care management services.” Gartner says that this technology enables healthcare systems to improve patient engagement and satisfaction, close gaps in care and increase revenue. 

Defining a digital front door in healthcare 

The concept of a digital front door in healthcare has evolved from patient portals to integrated digital health platforms over the years. Gartner’s definition of the technology is as follows:

“A digital front door acts as the primary point of digital engagement and digital interaction with consumers. It consists of an omnichannel communications platform (including web portals, mobile applications, SMS and voice) used to provide multiple stakeholder groups (such as consumers, family members or ecosystem partners) centralized access to a healthcare provider’s digital and analog products and services.”

Why providers need a digital front door 

Point solutions enable independent digital interactions, but they don’t support a cohesive patient health journey. A digital front door integrates various point products and data sources into a single digital health platform, freeing siloed data and unlocking the ability to deeply personalize patient health experiences. This enables providers to deliver orchestrated patient journeys across the full continuum of care.

How a digital front door aligns with provider objectives

A digital front door aggregates real-time data and leverages machine learning and artificial intelligence models to enable data-driven next best actions. These personalized interactions meet patients at a variety of digital touchpoints throughout their health journeys to close gaps in care. Not only does this streamline patient experiences but it significantly improves patient activation, engagement and satisfaction.

A digital front door also provides health systems an opportunity to differentiate in the marketplace. Leveraging technology with a composable infrastructure, organizations can build, customize and modify patient experiences while ensuring personalization at every touchpoint. This consumer-grade digital experience drives increased revenue through new acquisition, increased retention and improved patient loyalty. 

Improving the patient experience with a digital front door

Developing and deploying a digital front door strategy enables provider organizations to transform fragmented digital experiences into cohesive, uniquely personalized health journeys. Throughout the patient experience, the digital front door streamlines care to boost engagement and loyalty and improve economics for health systems. 

Gartner and Hype Cycle are registered trademarks and service marks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.