Modern Healthcare Consumer

With the ACA now in place since 2010, a wave of new health-centered consumer technologies such as wearables and smartphone apps and price transparency software to help consumers make informed care purchase decisions, healthcare consumers should be empowered to take ownership of their health. But have healthcare consumers really changed? Not as much as you may think. Though technology may be changing at lightning speed, people are still people. The changing variables are scientific discovery, technology advancement and the costs associated with healthcare delivery. There may be no better example of how many people are unchanging than the obesity epidemic.
About 78% of consumers say they would be interested in receiving virtual health services, but only 1 in 5 has had that opportunity, according to a new survey from Accenture conducted by Nielsen.Physicians could save big money by providing more virtual services in combination with seeing patients in their offices, said Frances Dare, Accenture managing director of virtual health services.
About $7 billion worth of primary-care physicians' time annually could be saved if patients could shift annual exams out of the doctor's office to home; do electronic visits for after-care and question-answering; and if they didn't have to go to the doctor for certain chronic disease management, such as for hypertension and diabetes, Dare said. Accenture made those estimates by analyzing federal health data, she said.
Providers who ignore that consumers desire the convenience and cost-savings of virtual healthcare are likely to see patients turn to competitors “willing to make it available,” Dare said.“Consumers are clear: In the 21st century, 20th century healthcare is not good enough,” she said.The Accenture survey included 1,501 consumers who answered questions online in October.
For the 1 in 5 respondents who had received care virtually, the reasons they cited most often for seeking virtual care are: greater convenience than traditional in-person healthcare services (cited by 37%); familiarity using technology to manage their health (34%); and curiosity to try virtual health (34%).
Consumers said they would be more likely to “try virtual” if encouraged by a physician (cited by 44% of respondents) or a healthcare payer (31%).
Dr. Bill Conway, CEO of the 1,100-physician Henry Ford Medical Group in Detroit, said patients of the Henry Ford Health System are making 3 million visits annually via the online My Chart system to check their health records or make appointments remotely using the secured personal portal built as part of the system's Epic health records platform.

There are more consumer engagement tools and programs than ever before. Yet, most of these programs are delivered with a one-size-fits-all approach, and the consumer experience is still very fragmented. So, what is really needed to empower consumers? The right message and the right tools must be delivered through the right channels at precisely the right time to drive desired outcomes. From incentive program and advocacy services to digital tools, transparency solutions and more – what has the greatest potential to increase fluency and engagement, to support decision-making, and to influence behavior? We’ll get to see in the years to come.
Location: New York, NY, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why you should find a Primary Care Physician?

Image
Who is a primary care physician? A primary care doctor or physician is the physician you first seen in case you have a health problem. Your primary care doctor will help you get the best care and also talk to medical specialists about your health case so that you can get the best treatment. He or she will be involved in your healthcare for a long time. You will always receive primary medical care in an outpatient setting just like you would do in a doctor’s clinic or office. You may be looking to change your primary care physician or get a new one. Never be worried! To find a doctor near you is an important step towards managing your healthcare. Your primary physician is always your medical “Home”. This is the medical doctor you will visit most mostly if you have medical needs such as routine screening, non-emergency diseases such as sore throat and earaches, wellness visits and when you need someone to ask of health questions or conce...
Read more

Genetic Sucrase-Isomaltase Deficiency (GSID)

Image
Sucrose or table sugar is a disaccharide that is made up of two simple sugars linked together by glycosidic bonds. The two simple sugars are glucose and fructose. Maltose is also another disaccharide made up of two glucose molecules. Human beings cannot absorb sucrose or maltose directly from the small intestines to the blood stream. Therefore, two enzyme known as Sucrase and Isomaltase are needed to cleave sucrose and maltose into glucose and fructose which are simple sugars (monosaccharide) that can be absorbed from the digestive track to the blood stream. If there is absence or low levels of sucrose and isomaltase, then a person is unable to break down sucrose or starch. What is GSID? Genetic Sucrase-Isomaltase Deficiency (GSID) is a rare genetic disorder that affects one’s ability to digest sucroseor maltose due to low levels or absence of two digestive enzymes, Isomaltase and Sucrase. Sucrase and Isomaltase are two enzymes that are associated with digestion of starch and ...
Read more

Benefits of Social Media States Healthcare

Image
Many social media tools are available for health care professionals (HCPs), including social networking platforms, blogs, microblogs, wikis, media-sharing sites, and virtual reality and gaming environments.These tools can be used to improve or enhance professional networking and education, organizational promotion, patient care, patient education, and public health programs.  Social media provide HCPs with tools to share information, to debate health care policy and practice issues, to promote health behaviors, to engage with the public, and to educate and interact with patients, caregivers, students, and colleagues. HCPs can use social media to potentially improve health outcomes, develop a professional network, increase personal awareness of news and discoveries, motivate patients, and provide health information to the community. Physicians most often join online communities where they can read news articles, listen to experts, research medical developments, cons...
Read more