As the healthcare world increasingly switches to digital platforms, and systems like EHR Systems and Patient Portal become increasingly common, patient experience is also rapidly changing. With the new digitized age, patient records are now electronic on the provider end as well as the patient end, which also means that patients are now more involved than ever in their healthcare trends and decisions. With Patient Portals offered by various companies, patients can now digitally input their medical information through their smartphones. They can also book appointments, receive prescriptions, and view their lab results.
These advancements seem to speak of convenience only and are assumed to promote patient loyalty, but is that all there is to them? As it turns out, it is not. Since not all digital healthcare systems are created equal, adoption of ineffectual systems by providers and practices are actually leading to patients changing their providers to be able to enjoy a smoother healthcare process.
A 2019 health consumer study by Cedar, a patient engagement platform, has revealed that patients are now getting increasingly frustrated by digital healthcare systems and are likely to make a drastic decision out of poor experience: switching providers.
The Tendency to Switch Providers Over Inefficient Digital Systems
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The study carried out extensive interviews with over 1,600 American healthcare consumers to explore patient loyalty. Alarmingly, even though patient-practitioner relationships are considered strong and lasting, as much as 41% of patients said they would stop going to their regular healthcare provider in order to have a better digital experience. This means over 2 in 5 people may leave a perfectly efficient provider just because they have to deal with incompetent online options. Poor digital experience includes problematic and inconvenient interactions with components like online bill payment, appointment forms, result delivery, etc.
It was also found that digital experience can often become the sole reason consumers provide negative reviews for providers, even if the providers are otherwise efficient and good at their job. At least one in five patients said they had left a provider a negative review because they had a bad experience with their digital healthcare systems. Since consumer reviews are highly significant in the healthcare industry and over 52% of people consult online reviews before choosing a provider, this is a substantial finding that is alarming for providers and reinforces the need to ensure that they choose the right digital systems.
Patient Loyalty in Millennials
Interestingly, faltering patient loyalty on account of flawed digital systems was found to be the highest in respondents aged 18-24. Some remarkable findings about younger patients as compared to older patients were:
- Younger patients are three times more likely to switch providers due to inefficient digital systems as compared to patients aged over 65
- Younger patients are four times as likely to have already abandoned at least one previous provider due to poor digital experience as compared to patients aged over 65
Florian Otto, founder and CEO of Cedar, commented on the substantial study, saying, “Similar to the scenarios that have played out in other industries like e-commerce, healthcare providers are now being judged by the digital experience they provide their patients.”
While technology has rapidly innovated how we treat patients on the clinical side, administrative processes have yet to catch up. Modern consumers — armed with new levels of data, treatment options and heightened expectations — now demand more and the industry must rise to the challenge,” he further added.
The Way Forward
Fortunately, while the study highlights the problems associated with electronic systems, it also provides solutions according to what healthcare consumers want. It highlights the following proposed demands, among others:
- 83% of patients want flexible payment plans
- 38% of patients want better client support
- 33% of patients want digital bill payment
Additionally, a defining positive insight is that patients are not frustrated by digital systems in entirety, but by poor digital systems and even by the absence of digital adoption by providers. What patients require are not manual systems, but efficient, fast, and easy to understand electronic systems that support healthcare instead of making it more complex. Patient experience is now the most significant factor in practice sustainability growth, as found out by a CureMD research, which is why it is essential that providers make careful and meticulous choices when it comes to digital system providers – if they are to retain their consumers and build a loyal patient base.