With the near-term possibility of widespread vaccination possible, we can finally start to go beyond our daily work concerns and take longer-term planning into consideration. This hope, frankly, requires an expansion of our planning time frame, which applies to both individuals and corporate entities-and the health system is no exception.The loss of the health system is huge, and AHA estimates that the loss of hospitals and health systems across the country is minimal $323B 2020. In the face of such a major financial blow, the need to seize the current opportunity for strategic planning and adjustment cannot be overemphasized. Although the health system has countless parallel tasks to be done, it is focused on understanding where consumers and patients are currently located, then meeting with them and incorporating clinicians’ concerns-because they also emerge from varying degrees of lockdown- Created progress for the rapid change of the status quo.
What your patient community needs from you:
At first it was a last resort, and then confused by fear, finances and inconvenience, many patients have been postponing much-needed care. This not only creates pent-up demand, which can be released at any time through higher vaccination rates, and the diseases caused by the long-term lack of active management are usually more complicated. Carry out patient outreach activities through targeted marketing activities, invest in search engine optimization to increase clinician profiles, and intentionally focus your work on the service line that can best address the delayed clinical needs of patients to improve your organization Visibility of available access. Emphasizing service lines that can meet the growing consumer demand for re-engagement in chronic disease management, and service lines that are more profitable for reimbursement can help speed up the time for the health system to recover.
What does your clinical community need from you:
In order for your efforts to re-attract patients to succeed, you need to coordinate your efforts with the clinicians who are in charge of seeing these patients. Make sure to have a plan to provide sufficient availability to match the needs you are trying to surface. Your service line for reactivation and growth needs to work with and be consistent with outreach and visibility activities, because the patients you are trying to bring back to the system will feel any disconnect here.
What your patients and clinical community expect from the pandemic:
Not only have we adapted to certain phenomena, we have gradually seen them as an advantage in how we obtain and provide medical services during a pandemic, and the health system needs to maintain these services after a pandemic. The first of these is online scheduling. There is no better example of how millions of people can schedule vaccinations to build expectations of this convenience. Even before this, studies have shown that patients are increasingly seeking the ability to make appointments online, and more than 50% of millennials and Generation X now prefer to make appointments in this way. Continuing this investment in online scheduling will reap dividends in the post-pandemic recovery plan. Similarly, the phenomenon of virtual care will continue to exist. Clinicians and patients alike are beginning to appreciate this option, although out of necessity, it is now seen as an effective and feasible option. In fact, 72% of people who have a virtual visit in 2020 said this is their first experience of virtual care, and 74% hope it will become a standard part of their future care. Virtual care is an investment that requires coordination with your clinical leadership, but to ensure that long-term products are deployed wisely and resonate clinically.
The post-pandemic journey will be a challenging one, but considering the efforts of patients and clinicians, it will open the way for creative solutions that are accepted by both stakeholder groups.
Photo: Nuthawut Somsuk, Getty Images
