With patients hesitant about care access, they are demonstrating interest in self-management, which could help providers transition to value-based care.
The COVID-19 pandemic could help set the stage for more patient engagement in care management plans, ultimately helping providers along the path toward more value-based healthcare, according to a new survey report from EY Parthenon obtained via email.
The survey of some 1,400 healthcare consumers largely confirmed previous industry reports stating that patients are reticent to visit their provider offices in the midst of a global pandemic. Fifty-five percent of respondents in the EY Parthenon survey said they had delayed care because of the pandemic, although 90 percent said they plan to access care after the pandemic winds down.
By and large, patients are fearful that they will contract the virus at their provider office, specifically if the office sees overcrowding, especially in the waiting room.
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That said, patients are still focused on their healthcare, with 50 percent saying they expect to still spend as much on their medical care during the pandemic. Sixty percent said they expected they would spend the same amount on their medications.
Those who estimated they would have to cut down on their healthcare spending were mostly individuals enrolled in Medicaid, who may have already had challenges in with healthcare costs but saw those issues exacerbated due to the recent economic downturn.
Instead, patients are recognizing the role that they must play in their own care management while at home, the report suggested. Patients know that if they are not visiting their medical providers, they need to be engaged in their own care in order to stay healthy.
Clinicians should capitalize on this moment, especially considering clinicians are among the most trusted sources of health and COVID-19 information among patients.
“This credibility gives providers a unique opportunity and platform to build greater connections with their patients and positively influence their behaviors,” the researchers pointed out.
The survey results show that patients are trying to put wellness into their own hands so they don’t have to access healthcare as often. Patients are looking to engage in healthcare self-management, largely enabled by patient engagement technology.
“This is an inflection point and opportunity for providers, who are trusted more than any other source of information about the pandemic, and can instill behaviors to benefit both patients and themselves,” the researchers said.
Patients who are older were more likely to say they plan to take a more active role in disease self-management. Over two-thirds of those over age 65 said they want to be more engaged in their own healthcare management moving forward, while half of those ages 26 to 34 said the same.
“It will no longer be enough to tell patients, ‘You do this, then you do that,’” the researchers explained. “This change is occurring alongside changing payment models, centered on improved health outcomes as opposed to fee-for-service, and the evolution of delivery models, enabled by technology.”
Notably, this could speed up the rate of value-based care models, which generally operate on the basis that providers will drive wellness care with patients in order to cut down on more expensive interventions down the line.
Heightened patient interest in self-management could mean patients stay healthier in the long run, which could deliver on the long sought after goals of providers in value-based payment arrangements.
Technology is going to play a huge role in this transition. Telehealth, for example, has been a boon throughout the pandemic. Before COVID-19, 17 percent of patients had used the technology, but 30 percent said they’d tried it during the pandemic, the survey showed.
Patients largely like telehealth for when they are waiting in their cars for an in-person appointment, for follow-up care, for recurring appointments, or for their first appointment about a certain health condition.
This patient interest in using engagement technology is not just limited to telehealth video or audio visits. It also includes use of the patient portal, self-service check-in technology, and remote patient monitoring tools.
To that end, providers need to cost-compare different technologies and investigate which align with their current payment models. Understanding how, and for what, patients want to use patient engagement technology will also sway purchase decisions for providers.
Finally, clinicians should consider how they educate patients about technology, not only teaching them how to use a tool but also about what the tool can do for self-management.
“These efforts will enable good behaviors during the pandemic, like reducing the number of people in doctors’ offices and hospitals at one time and making every minute count, through something as basic as virtual waiting rooms,” the researchers said.
And after the pandemic, this could be useful for keeping patients adherent to care plans, which again could ultimately boost provider bottom lines for value-based payment models.
However, to counter that point, it is important for providers to still get patients in for some types of care. Although a push for more patient self-management could be a good thing to reduce costly events like emergency department visits, providers still need to make sure patients go in for wellness checks, preventive screenings, and preventive care like vaccinations.
“By addressing patients’ top concerns, providers should be able to provide the comfort for resuming non-urgent care,” the researchers said. “This is not just vital to drive strong financial performance in the sector: if ignored for too long, non-urgent care can become urgent, as well as more costly, invasive and even dangerous.”
To that end, healthcare organizations need to convince patients that their facilities are safe places to go. This means organizations need to demonstrate they have tamped down on virus spread within their facilities.
“Presented with 10 options, they saw the most reassurance in regular COVID-19 testing for all doctors and staff, as well as virtual or telehealth options for their treatment needs,” the researchers reported. “They also wanted the number of patients allowed in a facility to be strictly limited at any given time for enforced social distancing.”
Additionally, medical providers need to outline the risks of delaying healthcare to their patients. Some patients may reason that it is safer to delay preventive care or wellness checks than it is to potentially expose themselves to the virus. In addition to showing patients the medical office is well protected from the coronavirus, clinical leaders need to explain to patients why it’s equally dangerous to put off care management.
Ultimately, providers are faced with two priorities as a result of the novel coronavirus. In the near term, providers need to make patients feel comfortable accessing healthcare. Technology will play a big role in this, as it keeps patients out of the provider office when possible and mitigates risks when patients do need in-person care.
But there are long-lasting impacts the researchers predicted the industry will see, namely in the push toward value-based care.
“In the longer term, patients will be more focused on the potential risks and tradeoffs as much as the benefits from their care, and forward-thinking providers can align their delivery and payment models around those changing dynamics,” the researchers concluded.
“The pandemic has perhaps been the most disruptive event to our health care system in our lifetimes, but through trust, technology and education, you can turn challenges into advantages — for you and your patients.”
Source: Patient Engagement Hit