The healthcare industry is moving to an era where the calls for consumer-driven healthcare plans are growing louder than ever. So, what exactly does patient-centric care mean for healthcare players? By committing to incorporate a patient-centric approach, healthcare player must keep the satisfaction of their patients in the spotlight while delivering services. Furthermore, patients must have unrestricted access to their data – on-demand and at-will. It also seeks to ensure a more collaborative and participatory relationship between patients and healthcare providers. As far as the doctors are concerned, patient-centricity means a transformation in their role from a mere source of expertise to becoming a facilitator in guiding the patients and making them feel cared for. Much simple as it sounds, in reality, this transition might not be a cakewalk unless players in the healthcare industry learn how to realign their processes and understand patient priorities better. In this blog, we help you crack some of the commonly asked questions related to patient-centric healthcare:
Why is patient centric approach necessary in the healthcare industry?
Several recent studies suggest that patient-centric care can help bring exceptional healthcare outcomes. In the healthcare industry, patient-centricity is a win-win approach. On the business side, healthcare providers who ensure better patient care can expect more trust from their customers and patients are less likely to switch physicians when they report positive experiences. On the technical side, recent reports show that patients respond better when they are treated in hospitals with highly rated patient-centric care. These patients are also less likely to require frequent re-admissions.
To know more about the advantages, opportunities, and challenges of adopting a patient-centric care model.
What are the challenges in implementing a patient centric approach?
Though a patient centric approach could be time-consuming and expensive, the more significant challenge for healthcare industry companies is to change the existing organizational culture. Healthcare providers must start off by providing healthcare staff and the physicians with adequate training to equip them for a patient-centric mindset. Furthermore, players in the healthcare industry must understand how the shift to patient-centric care can mean new experiences for the team (doctors, nurses, and staff) and in turn, have an immediate impact on patient care. Taking the financial perspective into consideration, the transition to patient centric care can create a financial strain on healthcare organizations. Additionally, Patient centric care may result in the use of resources that are not currently reimbursed in most health insurance packages. Therefore, reimbursement policies will need to adjust according to the changing care model.
What are the advantages of becoming patient centric?
Measurement of consumer-driven healthcare model involves partnering with patients in a meaningful way to decide what to measure, how to measure it, and how to report and use the results of the measurement. Here are some of the ways in which this approach can prove beneficial for healthcare providers:
- Patient-centred care actively engages all stakeholders and leads to reduced overall expenses. It reduces waste of the hospital’s material and staff resources by making fewer process delays, maximizing patient education efforts and decreasing diagnostic tests and referrals.
- Hospitals implementing a more patient-centred approach can improve employee satisfaction and retention. Improved retention contributes to high-quality staff, less training costs and decreased expenses due to inefficient practices.
- The best reason for implementing a patient-centred model in your hospital is that it has proven record of patients becoming happier, more satisfied, heal more quickly, with less pain and stay healthier for longer periods of time.