As the digital age consumes everyone, it is essential that medical feedback is available online. People old and young turn to the web for virtually all their information. Whether searching for a hospital or looking at patient reviews online, people will choose a healthcare provider much like making many other choices, by relying on available research and feedback, which is easily found on the web.
And combined with a strong people-centric care program, healthcare providers should use the web to drive improved patient satisfaction. Whether the patient left a positive or negative review, these comments show honest interaction between a patient and a healthcare provider with genuine, impactful feedback. This simple engagement with the patient online simultaneously improves patient satisfaction and instantly instills more trust in the healthcare provider’s reputation, by allowing the patient to provide feedback on their terms.
Just like you expect someone to answer the phone, patients also expect a timely response when posting something online. The goal of such a care program is to create a trustworthy, personal interaction, whether during a phone call or online. Google cites that 72% of patients turn to online reviews when selecting a healthcare provider, which further magnifies the need to have a patient care program that is traditional with people-centric approaches combined with technology readily available in the digital age.
Virtual communication with patients is not limited to managing reviews. Recent studies have found that some physicians also use social media such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to interact with their patients. Recent studies show that about 60% of physicians were found to favor interacting with patients through social media to provide patient education, health monitoring, and encourage behavioral changes and medication adherence. Social media and digital online management shouldn’t replace a people-centric approach, but combining personal follow-up phone calls with digital interactions delivers a powerful approach to drive improved patient satisfaction.
PREMEDEX focuses on helping your teams engage with patients in a variety of methods. Learn how we can help you improve patient satisfaction. Click here to contact us today.