As healthcare organizations prepare for further economic instability, many are looking for new ways to remain as competitive as possible–offering patients new, more convenient ways to pay for their health and maximize their patient experience.
Further driving this change and update is an ongoing tidal trend of “healthcare consumerism,” in which patients are looking for the most service value for the least amount of time, energy and cost. This new transition to more competitive payment methods has left many questioning how they can maximize the patient experience for both providers and payees, helping to shape the future of healthcare and payment processing.
Below, we’re exploring different parts of the payment process that can be refined across the industry, offering you areas that you can begin evaluating and optimizing today within your organization.
How do your patients receive communication about their payments? With the prevalence of a more customized healthcare experience, patients across the industry are taking a renewed interest in the management of their personal care. While this is a positive development that can lead to more engaged patient-provider relationships, this is also continuing to raise the bar of expected communication and ease of access–requiring organizations to find new ways to cater to the patient’s administrative needs. Taking a look at your outreach methods can help you to further refine the patient experience and can lead to newfound opportunities to streamline. Consider reaching out with an omnichannel strategy, including:
With any channel(s) that you choose, ensure that you have full compliance and security to encourage transparency and to avoid complications down the line.
Your goal as an organization is to profit off of patient transactions. However, adhering to rigid payment structures may not be the most efficient way to boost your active payee count. By remaining flexible with your patients and providing a variety of payment options and methods, you can further engage with your patients and receive payments at a faster and more regular pace. Different factors, such as eligibility, current automated revenue cycle management (RCM) tools and other components factor into the patient payment experience and the ability of the patient to pay at the time it’s due. That’s why consistent re-evaluation of your RCM process is vital.
Relying on automated tools and continuing to re-evaluate and refine your methods is crucial for your success in collecting patient accounts. It can also reduce strain on clerical staff, avoiding the “analog trap” that can lead to inefficiency, inaccuracy and a compromised patient experience. If you’re looking for additional support in your RCM management, consider reaching out to the team at Zotec. Our specialists offer end-to-end management strategies and tools to help you reach your highest level of success and efficiency. For more information and to get started today, please visit our website.
