The following is a guest article by Jim Tyrrell, Vice President of Enterprise Product Management at TNS
COVID-19 didn’t spawn patient dissatisfaction, but the pandemic did accelerate it. In 2022, only 12% of US adults surveyed said healthcare was handled ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ well.
Patient care frustration can pose very real financial risks for healthcare brands: satisfied patients are 28% less likely to switch providers, highlighting the importance of addressing their needs to improve patient retention. Post-pandemic patient frustration can be traced to multiple factors, chief among them the blunt reality that Americans are simply burned out by the complexities that come with navigating today’s healthcare system.
Care coordination can be massively time-consuming, a ‘second job’ for many patients. Individuals dedicate up to eight hours per month to managing care coordination and navigating the healthcare system. Many providers have stopped accepting new patients, while wait times for some existing patients can stretch weeks or even months. All of this is exacerbated by rising costs of care and a hit-and-miss transition from manual appointment paperwork preparation processes to digital ones.
Robocalls Compound The Patient Care Challenge
In the face of these point-of-care patient experience challenges, healthcare providers are increasingly seeking to strengthen other care channels to pick up the slack. While digital transformation has been long underway in the healthcare industry, the voice channel has historically been neglected in favor of web, mobile, and social platforms.
But that is changing. So much of what needs to be communicated from healthcare organizations to patients to ensure continuity of care is time-sensitive – from health and diagnoses updates to appointment changes and billing/payment issues. For that reason, de-prioritizing the digital transformation of the voice channel can have a negative impact on the quality of care and the financial performance of healthcare providers. Look no further than a 2023 survey conducted by Transaction Network Services (TNS) finding that 60% of consumers prefer to engage with a phone call rather than any other method with their healthcare provider.
The value of the voice channel in addressing care challenges like patient burnout is being undermined by the onslaught of unwanted robocalls. Americans received 77 billion unwanted robocalls in the last 12 months, helping to explain why 68 percent of Americans never answer a phone call from an unknown number according to the same TNS survey.
Healthcare-specific robocalls are ubiquitous. Sixty-two percent of Americans received at least one health insurance robocall scam during open enrollment in 2023. The FCC annually warns Americans, particularly older Americans, that healthcare scams spike during open enrollment. Impersonation scams, for example, involve bad actors claiming they are with the Health Insurance Marketplace or from a specific healthcare insurance company.
These types of robocall scams erode trust in the healthcare industry and the voice channel, resulting in a breakdown in communication between patients and their providers. The inability to communicate with patients can increase their frustration levels and make them more likely to switch providers and cancel appointments, negatively impacting healthcare organizations’ bottom line.
Transforming Voice Channel Is Key To Patient Care
A 2023 Patient Experience Report by The American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) sums up the stakes of patient-provider engagement: “Positive patient-provider interactions play a crucial role in keeping people active within the healthcare system, bolstering trust in the system, and improving health outcomes overall.”
With patient frustration high, providers cannot afford further breakdowns in communication channels that would further delay care. Digital transformation of the voice channel can help to close this care gap – not only to protect patients from scams but to ensure legitimate, important calls from their providers get through. TNS’ own consumer survey data finds that 84% of US adults would answer a call from their healthcare provider (doctor, pharmacist, etc.) if the brand logo/name was displayed on their incoming call screen.
All of this builds healthcare brand trust with existing and prospective patients. More than 8 in 10 Americans (81%) said they would answer a branded call if it followed a recent action they have taken with that brand (i.e., a medical provider confirming an appointment) while 79% would answer a branded call from their healthcare provider if they were due for a check-up or prescription.
This data affirm that the digital transformation of voice anchored by branded calling can deliver several patient care and operational benefits to healthcare organizations.
Improved Lead Generation Process
Voice communication remains critical to the patient journey. Potential patients may first interact with other channels to acquire information and conduct due diligence, but it is often voice calls that are needed for patients to convert. Failing to reach and engage patients via voice represents a breakdown in the lead generation process. Branded calling helps rebuild trust, enabling opportunities to be converted into patients effectively.
Enhanced Productivity
Branded calling empowers healthcare staff to reach patients more efficiently by displaying the brand’s logo, name, and reason for the call. This streamlined approach reduces the number of attempts required to reach patients for appointment confirmation, coverage, and billing issues, or to provide health updates.
Optimization of Voice for Complex Patient Care
Navigating the healthcare ecosystem and understanding coverage can be challenging for patients. The voice channel remains well-suited for providing rapid and accurate answers to these complex inquiries.
For healthcare brands seeking to address patient burnout as part of the broader care challenge, digital transformation of the voice channel is critical – not only to blunt the impact of robocalls but to restore trust between healthcare providers and their patients.
About Jim Tyrrell
Jim Tyrrell is Vice President of Enterprise Product Management at TNS with specific responsibility for TNS’ Communications Market solutions.
