Why Patient Engagement Is Critical to Your Healthcare Practice's Future

Patient engagement has increasingly become more critical in every healthcare organization, from hospitals to small medical practices. So, how will patient engagement matter more in the future, and why is it vital to your practice’s success? Patient engagement can lead to better outcomes and increased patient participation in medical decision-making.

Patients become active members of the care team through patient engagement strategies. Suppose you want your patients to be more invested in their health. In that case, the way to do that is to inform them about their health information, give them better treatment options, and allow them to make proactive healthcare decisions. This builds accountability and promotes loyalty.

This article spotlights the true meaning of patient engagement and why every practice needs it to stay relevant.

What Is Patient Engagement?

Patient engagement is the collaboration between healthcare providers and patients in the care plan decision-making process. Engagement with patients empowers medical practitioners to build trust and stronger relationships, ultimately improving health outcomes. It refers to an ideal situation in which patients are well-informed about possible treatments, recovery, medication options, and other relevant things to their medical care and contributes to improved health outcomes.

It takes proactive patients and supportive, open-minded physicians to create beneficial patient engagement solutions. Medical practitioners must implement patient engagement software to scale those solutions that streamline patient-provider communication and workflows.

Patient engagement software drives better outcomes and customized care. Accountability also increases when patients engage in care decisions.

It’s proven that more and more patients prefer remote care, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. A study from Accenture shows that 60% of patients are interested in using digital communication software and continue to access care via telehealth. Patients can reach out to their providers faster by using patient communication tools. With text messaging solutions, providers can make more time for their patients and quickly provide answers to their concerns in real-time without letting the patients travel down to the health center.

5 Ways Better Patient Engagement Can Help the Future of Healthcare Organizations

Healthcare providers must prioritize patient engagement more to help their practice further. Here are five ways that patient engagement can help healthcare organizations and other medical practices.

1. Shared Responsibility - Patient engagement helps medical practices share the responsibility of care and healthcare management with the patient. Treatment success also falls on the patient, not just on the physician or the healthcare provider.
   
   
2. Better Health Outcomes - When healthcare providers practice proper patient engagement where the patient communicates and collaborates effectively, quality care and positive patient outcomes are achieved. Medical practitioners can prevent negative outcomes in treatment plans and improve patient health through effective communication and collaboration.
   
   
3. Increased Revenue - With proper patient engagement in place, the patient attends regular wellness exams and testing appointments. The routine or follow-up check-up helps diagnose illness in the earlier stages or keep an illness managed to avoid negative progression. An engaged patient shows enthusiasm in taking necessary treatments from their care provider. These involved patients enhance your practice’s reputation, attracting prospective patients to switch to your practice, which increases your revenue.
   
   
4. Increased Patient Retention Rate - Patient engagement increases patient retention rates, which is beneficial for a healthcare provider in the long run. Patients want to feel appreciated and valued by their healthcare provider. When patients are engaged, they are happier about their overall care, making patient retention easier for the provider.
   
   
5. Streamlined Workflow - Excellent quality of patient engagement improves the workflow of medical practices and healthcare organizations. It helps patients understand their providers. Constant utilization of EHR increases the efficiency in the office and engages patients through telehealth. With 2-way texting, the communication between the patient and provider can be clear, reducing misunderstandings and confusion, and resulting in a streamlined workflow.

How Does Patient Engagement Benefit Patients?

Patient engagement doesn’t only help healthcare organizations and other medical practices, but patients can also benefit from quality patient engagement. When the patient’s knowledge and understanding of their health become clearer, it encourages them to be more actively engaged in their well-being.

1. Reduces Emergency Visits - When patients and healthcare providers collaborate effectively, both parties are proactive in recognizing the problems related to a patient’s disease. Engaged patients are typically less likely to be readmitted to the hospital after discharge. Properly managing a patient’s condition can also prevent needing emergency treatment because there’s an effective communication line where it’s easy to detect and solve illnesses before they escalate.
   
   
2. Reduces Healthcare Costs - Patients are more willing to work with their healthcare provider consistently because of great patient engagement. When they manage their health well with preventive measures, they reduce the need for healthcare services, including emergency services. This helps lower their healthcare costs.
   
   
3. Provides Access to Online Health Record for Increased Responsibility - It encourages patients to take ownership of their health when they can conveniently access their health information and other essential data 24/7 anywhere they are — monitoring their condition, medications, treatment, and other health-related concerns. Healthcare providers and other practices can share sensitive care information with their patients through online portals and maintain engagement without worrying about security breaches.

What Are the Most Effective Strategies to Initiate Patient Engagement?

Patient engagement is not a minor area for medical practices. It is essential to facilitate the growth of your organization. When you introduce patient engagement strategies in your practice, it is necessary to understand these five key elements:

1. Establish and promote a culture of teamwork
2. Create a clear and solid vision for patient engagement in your practice
3. Optimize the right technology tools or software
4. Empower your patients to become collaborators in their care
5. Chart progress and be prepared to adapt and change

Implementing these five strategies to achieve exceptional patient engagement successfully takes discipline and dedication within your practice or organization. Once you find your pace, you can perfect quality patient engagement and have a seamless workflow.

Embrace Patient Engagement as an Essential Element of Your Practice

A provider-centric strategy used to be the traditional approach of healthcare organizations. But it fails to acknowledge the critical role patients play in their well-being. Today’s future-forward healthcare organizations primarily focus on shifting to a value-based approach, and patient engagement is crucial in this new model. A recent report from Global Health Care Outlook by Deloitte states that medical practices and healthcare organizations worldwide seek cost-effective and innovative ways to deliver patient-centric, technology-enabled smart health care, both inside and outside hospital premises.

Allowing your patients to take control and make them accountable for their health leads them to better health outcomes. Additionally, patient engagement is an essential element for the long-term success of medical practices and healthcare organizations.

If you want to have successful patient engagement, you need a solid strategy to work with your organization’s vision. By integrating a HIPAA-compliant medical software like Curogram, you can help your practice build better patient management solutions, allowing your practice to enhance patient communication and improve the patient experience.