{"id":491497,"date":"2023-09-12T19:08:41","date_gmt":"2023-09-13T02:08:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/blog\/post\/diagnosing-the-empathy-gap-in-healthcare-patient-experiences"},"modified":"2023-09-20T00:23:55","modified_gmt":"2023-09-20T07:23:55","slug":"diagnosing-the-empathy-gap-in-healthcare-patient-experiences","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.genesys.com\/en-sg\/blog\/post\/diagnosing-the-empathy-gap-in-healthcare-patient-experiences","title":{"rendered":"Diagnosing the Empathy Gap in Healthcare Patient Experiences"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section full_width=”stretch_row”][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Delivering exceptional healthcare encompasses more than what happens in the examination room. Modern healthcare providers are competing on end-to-end patient experiences. This includes everything from web interactions and phone calls, booking appointments and receiving advance information, to offering caring, timely and transparent ongoing support.<\/p>\n

Quality journeys<\/a> drive health outcomes and satisfaction for patients and their families, as well as care plan adherence and efficiencies. And they have a direct impact on reimbursements to providers.<\/p>\n

In the US, the CMS Five-Star Quality Rating System evaluates hospitals across criteria that include the quality and convenience of patient experiences and their healthcare outcomes. Increases in ratings translate to huge benefits to those outcomes, as well as to the provider\u2019s top and bottom lines. Genesys worked with a healthcare system in New York to establish that a half-point increase in its Star Rating equated to $25 million in additional annual revenue through a 5% bonus payment from CMS.<\/p>\n

To design and optimise care experiences, healthcare providers must understand which moments matter the most. And they must know how to exceed specific expectations. The sum of those moments is the overall quality of the experience \u2014 and that creates the memory patients will carry with them long term.<\/p>\n

Treating the Healthcare Patient Experience with Empathy<\/h2>\n

Genesys research reveals an empathy gap<\/a> in how healthcare providers deliver patient experiences. Patients want to feel heard and understood, knowing providers are paying attention to their needs and concerns. Supporting them on a journey that\u2019s stressful and disruptive means giving them experiences that are simple, convenient and personalised.<\/p>\n

Based on a survey of 2,000 adults in the US, the Genesys research uncovers urgent areas to improve patient experiences. The most critical gaps are at the beginning and end of the journey \u2014 where lack of information, communication and follow-up support deeply undermine confidence. Just one-third expressed a high level of confidence with any stage of their healthcare journey.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”488523″ css=”.vc_custom_1692656578980{margin-right: 1.5em !important;margin-bottom: 1.5em !important;}”][\/vc_column][vc_column width=”1\/2″][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Healthcare’s empathy gap<\/h3>\n

Download the report for insights, opportunities and the path forward for healthcare providers wanting to empower patients with seamless journeys.[\/vc_column_text]

Get the report<\/a><\/div>[\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]By leaving patients to manage their own care plans, providers are damaging loyalty and trust and increasing the risk of poor healthcare outcomes. Rethinking the journey from end-to-end will drive better satisfaction and effectiveness. Here\u2019s what health systems\u00a0and providers can do.<\/p>\n
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  1. Design end-to-end journeys that make patients feel informed and empowered.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Many providers aren\u2019t proactively offering their patients even the most basic information, including costs, services and treatment options. For example, although many agree cost is an important factor in their care, only 22% strongly agree they were made aware of the costs associated with their care prior to the appointment.<\/p>\n

    Additionally, people want access to more interaction channels during their care journey, especially when scheduling an appointment. While providers do offer a multitude of channels, only one-third of respondents said it was easy for them to schedule an appointment.<\/p>\n

    Healthcare providers can help patients to feel more informed and empowered by using artificial intelligence (AI) tools<\/a> to understand who they\u2019re interacting with (e.g., patient, family member, other caregiver) and why they\u2019re contacting the provider. This will enable providers to predict intent, orchestrate more personalised journeys across preferred channels, and offer more empathetic interactions.<\/p>\n

    For instance, providers can use AI technology to triage inbound interactions and forward them to either to the appropriate self-service channel or the best-suited nurse or care centre agent. Then the provider can use AI in patient care to assist those employees by serving up the right knowledge and resources during interactions to answer questions.<\/p>\n

    This will require a digital transformation across front- and back-office processes<\/a> and a cloud-based customer experience platform to connect systems and then provide accessible data and convenient services.<\/p>\n

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    1. Make discussions about treatment options and plans more inclusive<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      How healthcare providers currently approach treatment makes several patients feel excluded and without power. More than 75% of patients expect to spend at least 15\u201330 minutes with their clinician.<\/p>\n

      Yet most appointments last only 13\u201315 minutes, according to Medscape<\/a>. Patients feel rushed and that they\u2019re missing the opportunity to process information and ask questions.<\/p>\n

      Genesys survey findings confirm this. Fewer than four in 10 patients strongly agree their provider spent enough time with them or explained issues in a way they could understand.<\/p>\n

      One way to close the empathy gap here is to allow for more time for patient interactions. Providers can do this by automating follow-up tasks, such as scheduling additional appointments or tests, providing referrals and care plan instructions, and sending relevant reminders.<\/p>\n

      Patients get the benefit of extra time with a clinician, as well as less tasks to worry about as they focus on recovery or long-term lifestyle changes. Providers benefit, too, with better informed patients more likely to follow their care programs \u2014 lowering costs as a result.<\/p>\n

      Another approach is to continually optimise processes using journey analytics<\/a>. This will give healthcare providers real-time visibility into patient interactions. And they\u2019ll be able to identify drivers of dissatisfaction and opportunities to improve processes along the end-to-end patient journey. This results in a positive patient experience and a streamlined approach to care that creates efficiency and lowers risk.<\/p>\n

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      1. Focus on building relationships and loyalty.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Patients value having an ongoing relationship with their healthcare providers. However, providers don\u2019t communicate consistently enough to build a feeling of connectedness. This leads to missed opportunities to discuss a patient\u2019s ongoing health.<\/p>\n

        Two-thirds of patients would prefer to hear from their healthcare provider every 3\u20136 months, but the reality for the majority is 6\u201312 months. And just one-third of patients strongly agree they have a relationship with their healthcare provider and are known to that provider.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”488522″ css=”.vc_custom_1692656855161{margin-top: 1.5em !important;margin-bottom: 1.5em !important;}”][vc_column_text]Healthcare providers can use automation and digital technologies to help patients feel connected. Health apps, proactive notifications, telemedicine and wearables are a few options. Apps and wearables, especially, can provide data that enables providers to monitor patients\u2019 health remotely. And they can spot any warning signs of either a lack of care plan compliance or health decline.<\/p>\n

        Additionally, healthcare providers can empower clinical, service and support staff with tools that help deliver more proactive, personalised patient experiences \u2014 in a secure and compliant way. Predictive routing and agent-assist technologies<\/a>, for example, match patients with the employee best suited to assist them. And the tools provide employees the insights needed to answer the patient\u2019s questions.<\/p>\n

        Organisations across every industry are competing on customer experience \u2014 raising the bar for all businesses. In healthcare, that means medical innovation isn\u2019t enough to attract and retain customers. The confusion, stress and uncertainty many patients experience is creating a healthcare empathy gap.<\/p>\n

        It\u2019s time for healthcare providers to shift to a patient journey optimisation approach that closes the gap. In fact, 82% of executives say understanding customer experience at key points along the full customer journey<\/a> is important to their business strategy.<\/p>\n

        By implementing connected technology, measurement and management, healthcare providers can orchestrate and optimise patient experiences in real time. A digital transformation in healthcare requires cloud-based technologies, automation and artificial intelligence to connect and coordinate channels, data, employees, interactions, knowledge and systems.<\/p>\n

        At a time when 77% of consumers will walk away after five or fewer poor interactions, offering empathetic end-to-end experiences in healthcare is a remedy that will improve loyalty and health outcomes, as well as providers\u2019 business results.<\/p>\n

        Read the full report “Healthcare’s empathy gap<\/a>” online today.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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