Addressing healthcare consumerism with connectivity.

By Dr. Christine Gall, Healthcare Expert, T-Mobile for Business

The concept of healthcare consumerism driving patient choice regarding how, when and where they access care has been trending for a while.

In a 2018 study¹, Vivian Ho, Director of Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, and Anaeze Offodile, a physician at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, wrote, "We live in a world where an individual's discretionary choices (food, clothing and travel) are increasingly driven by convenience and amenability to control—for example, online shopping—and the prevalence of mobile apps."

The researchers advised that consumerism in healthcare is a permanent part of the healthcare landscape because healthcare customers want the same kind of access, convenience, and service they are accustomed to in other areas of life. Or, as a recent report from RevSpring², describes it, "efficient, personalized, and seamless" care.

Consumer's top expectations for experience when they access healthcare can be supported with reliable cell phone connections. These digital patient experience solutions should include:

Use of electronic forms. Electronic forms and optical character recognition (OCR) can make filling out paperwork faster and easier for patients. Datamation cites³ six benefits of electronic forms. They include:

1. Decreased costs and paper. Decreasing the use of paper and ink automatically reduces costs and streamlines processes by eliminating paper handling, distribution, storage, and retrieval.
   
   
2. Allows remote access. A major interest fueling consumerism in healthcare is the ability of patients to access information wherever they are and when they need it. Electronic forms allow instant access anywhere with an internet connection.
   
   
3. Improved data accuracy. Electronic forms can prevent incorrect formats and inconsistent or missing information.
   
   
4. Automation. Automation of electronic forms supports completion of basic customer information, including name, address, phone numbers and other demographics. These forms can also be enhanced with other automation including auto calculation and auto population of common information based upon previous documentation.
   
   
5. Security. Due to encryption and other security measures, electronic forms can improve safety and security.
   
   
6. Auditability. Chain of custody is often difficult or impossible with paper forms as it is not possible to identify who has viewed or edited information. Electronic forms can be tracked, not only to determine who has accessed them but to identify changes that have been made.

Digital connectivity is key to providing a good healthcare consumer experience. Timely digital medical communications between healthcare institutions, providers and patients are vital to supporting and managing the patient journey as well as improving access to safe, top-quality care and achieving optimal outcomes.

In 2021, the American Telemedicine Association advanced a framework for addressing health disparities through telehealth, citing the components critical to successful implementation. At the top of their hierarchical model is connectivity.

Trends in increased consumerism are forcing healthcare organizations to re-evaluate their delivery models to make accessing care easy and convenient. Digital medical communications tools that improve the overall care experience are becoming mainstream and influencing consumer choice. The entire patient journey is shaping patient perceptions of their overall experience and is driving future decision-making regarding the providers and systems they will utilize.