Research shows that patients have better outcomes and healthier lives when involved in their own care experience. This is why healthcare organizations use strategies to engage patients better.
Still, most healthcare leaders and clinicians believe just 34 percent of their patients are highly engaged. Engaging patients in their care can be challenging, but several strategies have proven successful.
Here are three strategies to consider to improve patient engagement results:
1. Provide Education
They must follow their medical regimens to keep patients engaged with their health management. However, according to the American Journal of Medicine, approximately 50 percent of patients with chronic disease do not obtain clinical benefits from treatment due to poor compliance.
Non-adherence is linked to poor clinical outcomes, increased hospitalizations, and lower quality of life. Therefore, keeping patients engaged and compliant with their health management is essential to improving clinical outcomes and quality of life.
In other words, when patients are taught about their condition and what they can do to improve it, they are more likely to comply with the recommended treatment plan.
2. Engage in Shared-Decision Making
This means the patient’s health can suffer when doctors and patients don’t communicate well or make decisions together.
Shared decision-making is a process in which clinicians and patients collaborate to make decisions about tests, treatments, and care plans according to clinical evidence. A good strategy for engaging with patients is making health plans and goals.
The study found that hospital admissions were reduced by 19 percent by using a shared decision-making program. This was attributed to the fact that patients received better care and had improved clinical outcomes.
Patients are more likely to adhere to a treatment plan if they are actively involved in decision-making about their care. Care teams should provide information and recommendations and solicit patient input and feedback. Doing so will make patients feel more invested in their care and more likely to follow through with treatment.
3. Reduce Barriers to Care
One of the biggest challenges in healthcare is ensuring that patients have access to care. People who live in rural areas, lack access to high-quality food, or have limited social interactions face increased risk factors for chronic illness. Fourteen percent of chronically ill patients say they do not get the care they need to manage their conditions. Barriers to access to care prevent people from receiving adequate care.
Virtual care can help make healthcare more accessible by providing solutions that allow patients to engage with healthcare services effectively, even when they cannot physically visit a healthcare provider. This can help preserve the patient-care team relationship and ensure that patients still receive the care they need.
This means that people who live in areas without enough healthcare providers can still get the care they need by using virtual solutions. These solutions can provide patients with a care team, personalized care plans, and support throughout their wellness journey. This will help ensure that patients have consistent, meaningful interactions with their care providers.
Employing patient engagement strategies alongside technology can ensure success in patient participation and improvement. This is because technology can report patient data in real-time, leading to better outcomes for healthcare organizations and patients.
Conclusion
There are many strategies that healthcare organizations can use to improve patient engagement. These include using technology to enhance communication and collaboration between patients and providers, increasing patient involvement in their care, and ensuring patients have the resources they need to make informed decisions about their health. Organizations that can effectively engage their patients will likely see better health outcomes, lower costs, and increased patient satisfaction.
Whether your patient has chronic conditions, behavioral health conditions, or just needs help transitioning out of an inpatient facility, Medistics is there to simplify their experience. We provide care management services that save you time, increase patient engagement, and deliver a better patient experience. Our primary goal is to humanize healthcare, focusing on behavioral health integration. Get in touch with us today and let us know how we can help!