Health systems across the U.S. are continuously faced with challenges to deliver quality patient care while also managing the business of healthcare. And over the past 10 years, new regulations have presented additional layers of pressure on operating performance. Appropriately, there has been a strong focus on improving performance based on patient metrics, namely patient satisfaction and readmissions rates. And studies indicate that these measures are working in some hospital systems. But not everywhere. Across the nation, hospitals of all sizes continue to be penalized from poor readmission rates. The financial impact can often reach levels of tens of millions of dollars … annually.
Looking at another side of current industry trends, some hospitals receive incentives (340B) for improved patient acquisition and services. Simply put, by serving more patients and providing more services to certain patient groups, hospitals actually receive financial rewards that directly impact operating performance. Over time, these rewards have become an integral part of hospital budgets, and yet in current times, there is ongoing scrutiny and pressures to ensure that these revenue streams remain constant. Much different that readmissions penalties, yet these incentives create pressures for performance on impacted health systems.
There are many pressures in today’s healthcare environment … some to reduce penalties, with others to sustain and improve revenue. The one solution to both of these challenges resides with a single solution, and that starts with effective, timely patient communications. Engaging with patients on a regular basis, especially before, during and after a hospital stay, is essential to quality patient care and satisfaction. Moreover, a well-managed communications program delivers timely information to hospitals and caregivers at critical moments during episodes of care. In other words, timely conversations with patients can alert hospitals to possible issues after a hospital stay, while concurrently providing guidance that a patient needs to be examined quickly to minimize or avoid a more serious issue.
The singular solution of a focus on patient communications is simple in concept, and yet very challenging given resourcing constraints at most hospitals. Oftentimes, hospitals default to the nursing staff, which is generally not the best approach given bandwidth constraints. A better approach is to partner with trained professionals who are closely aligned with hospital staffs for regular notifications about specific patient needs.
And at PREMEDEX, that’s what we do. We talk to patients. Multiple times a day. To hundreds of patients. Every day. If you’re serious about improving hospital performance in a meaningful way, then contact PREMEDEX so we can learn more about your needs.
Contact PREMEDEX today. We have the ONE thing that solves problems with readmissions and patient acquisition.