The worldwide pandemic has made people warier than ever about their health and overall well-being. When possible, patients tried to avoid visiting medical facilities and turned to modern tech to stay on top of their health at home.
As such, after the pandemic, digital health usage worldwide has been growing steadily. In particular, it’s forecasted to reach over 1.77 billion users by 2029. Unsurprisingly, this is also reflected in the U.S. patient engagement solutions market size, which is projected to grow at a CAGR of 15.28 from 2023 to 2030.
With the market potential growing, more and more medical professionals are looking into healthcare software solutions that can deliver higher patient engagement.
So, we thought it’d be important to discuss patient engagement software, explore its types and benefits, and share some emerging technologies that can make your solutions particularly unique.
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The Importance of Patient Engagement in Healthcare
Chances are, you already know what patient engagement is. After all, the term is rather self-explanatory. However, let’s make sure we’re all on the same page.
Expectations in the medical sector are increasingly becoming similar to that of the hospitality industry. This causes patients to demand greater service and participation in their health decisions. Hence, solutions that enable their contribution are growing in popularity.
So, what is patient engagement software? In essence, it facilitates patient involvement in the maintenance of their health, the creation of a collaborative doctor-patient environment, and the improvement of service quality. It can be patient-facing, physician-facing, or both.
Patient engagement platforms significantly simplify healthcare services for people, making them more accessible. In particular, individuals can easily schedule appointments, access medical records on the go, and receive outreach from providers.
Overall, patient engagement apps are widely used across all healthcare settings, from hospitals and emergency rooms to retail clinics and outpatient care facilities. In other words, well-being management software has become a real paradigm shift in the healthcare industry.
There are various types of patient engagement software, which we will explore in more detail later, but most of them combine elements of the following technologies:
- Practice management systems
- Medical billing solutions
- Post-acute care coordination platforms
- Customer relationship management tools
- Connected devices for health monitoring
Moreover, all of the above-mentioned tools can come in the form of a healthcare mobile application. Thus, further adding to your patient’s convenience.
Patient Engagement Software Functions
Letting patients become more involved in their medical care can be achieved with a single piece of engagement software or through interconnected systems working together.
Take a look at how Velvetech Integrated a Dental Appointment Scheduling Platform With a PMS
Yet, there are typical functions that distinguish patient engagement tools from others. Let’s take a look at the most common ones:
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Patient registration via portals: This functionality significantly reduces administrative processes and paperwork, empowering individuals to create their healthcare profiles independently and without a cuff.
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Appointment scheduling and reminding: These tools make it easy to book consultations. Once a visit is set, the platform sends automatic reminders to guarantee that patients do not miss it.
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Medical reminders: Patient engagement systems also help people stay on track with their medications. This function is especially useful for those who need to manage prescriptions on schedule.
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Feedback collection: Thanks to this capability, it is possible to gather feedback from users. Thus, pinpointing areas for improvement to provide better services.
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Payment processing: Typically, patient engagement solutions offer seamless and secure payment options to streamline billing processes. Hence, users can easily pay for services.
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Secure messaging: One of the key priorities of the patient engagement system is ensuring secure communication between individuals and doctors. This software function ensures the confidentiality of medical histories and conversations.
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Health monitoring: The ability to integrate with medical wearables allows for providing into an individual’s well-being, leading to personalized treatment plans.
As you can see, there are a multitude of patient engagement software functions in medical operations. However, not every medical practice wants to pursue the development of all of them. At the end of the day, it’s all about your unique business needs and the existing software you have on hand.
Key Types of Patient Engagement Software
With such a wide range of functionalities in patient engagement solutions, you probably may picture how many types of such apps are designed to meet different needs. As we mentioned earlier, these solutions often combine multiple features, thus reducing the need to craft separate apps for every function. Now, let’s explore the core applications that redefine the healthcare industry.
Telemedicine Platforms
In recent years, telemedicine has become one of the leading trends in mHealth solutions. Whether it’s providing virtual consultations, remote diagnostics, or personalized treatment plans, these apps are equipped with all the necessary digital tools to ensure seamless healthcare services.
In particular, telehealth gives people flexibility in managing their well-being and getting in touch with doctors promptly. Providers, in turn, benefit from these apps as well. On-time, optimized workflows, and enhanced patient monitoring are just a few valuable advantages to consider.
Check out more Benefits of Telemedicine for Providers and Patients
Patient Portals
Above, we have mentioned the possibility of securing patient communication with providers, scheduling appointments, and monitoring health. All of these and more can be achieved thanks to the patient portals.
Moreover, this digital tool makes it possible to access test results, view medical history, refill prescriptions, and find plenty of useful materials to enhance overall well-being.
Remote Patient Monitoring Systems
Picture a patient with diabetes who needs to regularly monitor blood sugar levels. Decades ago, they had to do this manually by using test strips. In case of any irregularities, they had to contact their doctor to schedule a consultation. And, it could take some time for the physician to respond.
However, with a diabetes management application in place, individuals can now do this with ease. In particular, such products seamlessly sync with smart glucose meters. Even better, they automatically track and transmit data in real time, enabling prompt intervention.
It’s a vivid example of RPM that streamlines health management.
Take a look at how we helped the client to improve Remote Patient Monitoring in Urology
Patient Education and Engagement Apps
Today, people have become more cautious than ever about their overall well-being. This is largely due to the wealth of information available on nearly any topic of interest on the web. However, for better outcomes, it’s crucial to rely on professional and trustworthy sources. Patient education and engagement apps come to provide such an opportunity.
Through these apps, users can access videos, photos, articles, and interactive content tailored to their symptoms. As a result, individuals gain a better understanding of their health conditions and receive relevant guidance on treatments and preventive care.
Social Support and Community Platforms
As the saying goes: “Shared pain is half the pain.” However, oftentimes, people feel overwhelmed talking about their health conditions with relatives and friends. Indeed, it may seem more comfortable for them to communicate with another patient who shares the same disease.
Today, social support and community platforms provide a safe space for individuals to share their experiences, engage with others facing similar challenges, and offer mutual support through social networks.
Benefits of Patient Engagement Software Development
Now that you have a better idea about patient engagement software, it’s worth discussing the benefits it can bring.
Better Service. By embracing patient engagement software, you will improve the level of provided services. The opportunities for communication between individuals and doctors will increase, leading to higher treatment quality and better patient outcomes.
Increased Loyalty. People will appreciate the opportunity to self-organize and become more involved in their medical care. As a result, they will continuously pick your facility and scarcely go to a different one.
Higher Efficiency. Once your patient engagement software is up and running, you will quickly observe a boost in efficiency since time spent on administrative tasks like scheduling or billing will be significantly reduced.
Reduced Costs. Since it becomes possible to automate many administrative tasks through patient engagement apps, you can significantly cut staff costs.
Patient-centric healthcare is steadily gaining popularity as people begin to place a higher value on obtaining medical services that let them actively participate in the treatment journey. So, don’t underestimate the usefulness of patient engagement solutions for your organization.
Innovative Technologies That Enhance Patient Engagement Solutions
You now know why patient engagement software is so important and the benefits it can deliver. However, that is just the beginning.
Emerging technologies like the Internet of Things, blockchain, and artificial intelligence can elevate your solution to a whole new level. Let’s take a look.
Internet of Things
The Internet of Medical Things involves a multitude of digital solutions for patient, asset, and staff management. However, in the context of facilitating patient engagement, one of the primary uses of IoT is definitely in remote patient monitoring.
We’ve already discussed RPM and highlighted the role of wearables in collecting crucial medical data and sharing it with physicians. For instance, IoT solutions can collect heartbeat, glucose, weight, or sleeping information and transmit it to doctors for early detection of potential health problems.
Thanks to the use of connected devices like wearables, patients become more involved in their well-being and medical practitioners gain insights into patient behavior that weren’t available before.
Learn more about the Internet of Things in Healthcare
Artificial Intelligence
Another innovation worth discussing is artificial intelligence in healthcare. It refers to a myriad of uses across the entire sector. However, a couple is particularly relevant in the context of patient engagement.
Predicting sickness potential. AI’s primary strength is the ability to go through enormous amounts of data at a speed that no human can. So, it can quickly analyze patient data and identify people at risk of developing a certain illness.
Once AI alerts the physicians, they can invite patients for a check-up, begin curing treatments, or suggest actions that patients can take for preventative measures.
Facilitating patient communication. We’ve already established that consumers want seamless access to medical information and to become more involved in their well-being. So, it’s only natural for them to expect a quick response whenever they submit an inquiry.
With AI-powered chatbots, you can cater to the above-mentioned customer expectations. These intelligent tools can filter patient requests, answer simple questions, direct people to relevant resources, or connect with a human operator. Thus, helping you streamline patient communication.
Personalizing patient experiences. Providers have access to a lot of medical data that reveals patient behavioral patterns. AI can help process this information and draw out valuable insights that medical staff can use to deliver a more personalized level of service.
By anticipating needs and delivering unique services, providers with AI-powered patient engagement software can differentiate themselves from competitors and start being seen as a truly caring organization.
Discover more about the Opportunities of Artificial Intelligence
Blockchain
The use of blockchain in healthcare to improve patient input might be a little less obvious. However, if we remind ourselves that the end goal is to help patients become more involved and in charge of their medical data — it all begins to make sense.
Without blockchain, patients have limited ownership of their health information. This hinders the cooperation between various providers and increases security risks associated with data exchange.
Yet, if providers embrace blockchain networks that leverage smart contracts, interoperability standards, and cryptography, patient trust can be significantly boosted. That way, individuals will be able to track what happens with their information and be more confident in the safety of their data.
Find out how Velvetech Helped a Healthcare Startup Leverage Blockchain to Protect Clinics From Security Breaches
How to Choose a Suitable Patient Engagement Software
Basically, you have two options: either developing a patient engagement app from scratch or deploying a ready-to-use product for your medical practice. If you choose the latter, it’s essential to consider the following factors before diving into implementation.
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Identify your practice’s specific needs: Primarily, it’s crucial to identify the key goals and needs your platform should cover. For example, if you find that users want more flexible appointment scheduling or educational materials, you should enhance your app’s outreach by including relevant features and capabilities to meet these objectives.
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Integration capabilities: Most likely, you will need to integrate your solution with various wearables and other medical systems, so ensure the app you choose offers seamless integration capabilities.
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User-friendliness: It’s worth noting that no matter how helpful your product’s features are, people won’t be inclined to use it if it’s not easy to navigate. Hence, make sure the platform you choose is simple and intuitive for patient interaction.
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HIPAA-compliance: You will handle plenty of patient private data through your app. Therefore, make sure the platform you use is safe and secure. Ideally, it should meet HIPAA compliance to protect sensitive patient information and keep your product trustworthy.
On the other hand, if you choose to design a solution tailored to your exclusive needs, we have a detailed article about the nuances of its creation. Read how to approach healthcare app development.
Is It Time to Develop Patient Engagement Software?
Patient engagement software development is increasingly growing in popularity within the medical sector. Plus, the rise of innovative technologies has made way for IT solutions to drive even more efficiency and create additional touchpoints with customers.
At Velvetech, we understand the importance of delivering unique and engaging experiences to your patients. Moreover, we have years of expertise in developing healthcare software solutions that enhance the digital capabilities of various organizations.
So, don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you’d like to discuss the development of patient engagement software for your company. We’ll be happy to help.
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