What is patient access, and why is it critical to the patient experience?

Patient access is the ability for a patient to obtain care. Accessibility should be a top priority to address the most pressing health needs in our communities. If care is not accessible patients may simply decide to give up on their search which could lead to harmful consequences and inequities. Barriers to patient access could be subtle or significant, from long wait times to complex decision trees, or simply that the patient experience was not designed with the patient in mind. Patient access impacts the patient experience in many ways such as timeliness of care, convenience, and continuity of care. Better patient experiences ultimately lead to higher overall patient satisfaction and retention.

5 Ways that DexCare Improves Care Accessibility – Your Patient Access Solution

1) DexCare makes it easier for prospective patients to discover and book with your health system

Patients can’t access care if they can’t find it on the channels they are used to searching. 75% of consumers begin their search on Google as opposed to directly on a health system website. When it comes to reaching new patients, ranking in Google search results should be a top priority. For starters, DexCare creates pages that load instantly – page performance being one of Google’s key ranking factors. DexCare ensures that your booking page shows up as a call to action directly from Google My Business. We are on the front lines of the digital transformation and will continue to adapt to meet patient needs and ensure our clients rank at the top of Google search results.

2) Smooth digital experiences lead to more bookings & better patient outcomes

When patients arrive on a DexCare white-labeled health system page, our algorithm can understand a number of personalization factors such as the context of a blog they are viewing, the intent behind a site search (ex: knee pain), provider preferences to surface specific slots, reasons for seeking treatment and insurance information. DexCare intelligently presents the best-fit care options that are most likely to lead to high patient satisfaction. Not only can patient access solutions improve the patient experience, but higher conversion rates signal back to Google that your healthcare system deserves to be at the top of search results.

3) Intelligent routing to steer patients toward the best fit option

DexCare advocates for the power of a simple “nudge.” Based on the context of their search and several other factors, DexCare will not only provide a list of in-person available appointment slots, but can also surface a telehealth option if it makes sense for the patient’s reason for visit and unique situation. Rather than waiting days for an in-person appointment, a patient can jump into a telehealth queue instantly and on average, be seen within 10 minutes.

4) Implement a telehealth solution to improve patient access

Offering a telehealth solution opens up the opportunity to serve more patients quickly. Certain conditions can be diagnosed and addressed over a video call such as pink eye, or a UTI. Telehealth can provide patients with a much faster option to address their health issues with a potentially much lower average wait time.

Telehealth opens up healthcare access to hundreds of thousands and even millions of people who live in rural areas where healthcare facilities and healthcare services are not as readily available. For example, Community Health Network,  which is based primarily in Indianapolis was able to expand its patient base to other areas of Indiana and adjacent states after launching its telehealth solution with DexCare.

5) Integrate with your EMR for a unified patient (and provider) experience

On the patient side, DexCare offers a seamless guest booking flow so that a login won’t be required to book an appointment. No matter which channel patients come from, or whether they are new or existing patients, their experience is streamlined and frictionless.

On the provider side, clinicians don’t have to leave the EMR interface. The patient health records and booking data would flow appropriately back into the EMR. This is also a simple way to track how many net new patients are coming to your health system.

DexCare Can Accelerate Your Patient Experience Journey

DexCare can help you optimize where patient demand meets your health system supply. This results in patients being able to access relevant booking slots in the fewest possible clicks, while protecting your valuable clinician resources and meeting the needs of your health system. Urgent care line getting too long? Patients looking for care can be directed in real-time to a different location or provided with an option for a telehealth visit if that is appropriate. With new options entering the market, an upgraded patient experience is more important than ever. Schedule time with DexCare to learn more about what DexCare can do for your health system.