The Patient Perspective
Part of our inspiration behind PortalPlus™ was to use technology to create the best possible patient experience while saving time and money for the medical practice. We wanted to engineer a patient experience that would:
- Make performing routine tasks convenient and easy
- Communicate to the patient all the key information before a visit, procedure, or surgery
- Give the patient access to important medical information (like current medications)
- Offer relevant patient education content
- Strengthen the rapport between the patient and the practice
...all while making life easier for the medical practice. Technology should simplify and enhance our lives, not complicate it.
Now let's take a look at the PortalPlus™ patient experience:
Make an Appointment
A patient wants to make an appointment with your practice.
The Old Way
The patient calls the practice. Hopefully, he'll be able to speak directly to a scheduler but he may have to navigate an inefficient phone tree and wait on hold a few minutes. Also, the patient can only call during business hours. Once the patient reaches a scheduler, the appointment is made.
The Better Way
It might still make sense for the patient to call, but if it's after hours, if the patient is in a public environment like an office cubicle, or if the patient is simply occupied it may be difficult to call.
Instead, the patient goes right to the practice website, creates an account in under 2 minutes, and requests an appointment through PortalPlus™. The practice securely messages the patient back to confirm a time, and the appointment is made!
The patient can also view the appointment on the "Visits" tab at any time and prepare for the visit by reading personalized patient education automatically suggested by the Portal.
Register for the First Visit
A patient is scheduled for the first visit and needs to fill out the appropriate paperwork.
The Old Way
The patient shows up at the office up to 30 minutes early and manually fills out all paperwork with a pen, often on an uncomfortable clipboard. In some cases, the patient must then wait for the staff to enter this information into the Practice Management System.
The Better Way
After the first visit was made, either the patient already has a portal account, or the staff instructs the patient to create one. If necessary, the patient creates an account in under 2 minutes. The patient then logs in, clicks "Register for First Visit" and fills out all forms directly through the patient portal. The patient is notified that registration is complete, and shows up just a few minutes before the scheduled appointment time.
Prepare for a Visit
A patient is scheduled for an office visit and is looking to prepare for the visit.
The Old Way
Most practices give verbal instructions to the patient to arrive a few minutes early and call the patient a few days prior to the office visit. No further information is provided.
The Better Way
The practice will likely still call the patient to remind her of the upcoming appointment. In addition, the patient receives an email reminder of the appointment a few days before the appointment is scheduled. When the patient logs in to the patient portal, she is taken to a "Prepare for Your Appointment" screen.
The patient sees exactly what visit she is scheduled for, when it is, at what location it is, and with which provider. The patient also sees preparation information specially prepared by the practice for this particular visit by this particular doctor. This could range from a stock text article to a webcam-recorded (or professionally recorded) video welcoming the patient.
The patient gets a chance to indicate whether she reviewed and understood the information, and the practice is able to collect data on how many patients actually viewed and signed off on the information.
In most cases, the patient is now well prepared for the appointment, which will lead to higher patient satisfaction, more efficient visits, and greater patient compliance.
Prepare for a Procedure or Surgery
A patient is scheduled for surgery, or any procedure that requires some preparation.
The Old Way
Prior to the procedure, the doctor, a nurse, or another clinician verbally explains to the patient what the surgery or procedure involves - the same speech they have given countless times before. In some cases, the patient may also receive printed educational material, hopefully kept up to date. The patient signs an informed consent indicating that all information has been understood. The informed consent is then added to the patient's medical record.
The Better Way
A doctor, nurse, or other clinician will still likely go through a verbal explanation of the upcoming surgery or procedure. In addition, the patient receives a special email with a link to more information about the upcoming surgery or procedure. When the patient logs in to the patient portal, he is taken to a "Prepare for Your Procedure" screen.
The patient sees exactly what procedure he is scheduled for, when it is, at what location it is, and with which provider. The patient also sees preparation information specially prepared by the practice for this particular procedure by this particular doctor. This could range from a PDF document and interactive animation to a webcam-recorded (or professionally recorded) video instructing the patient.
The patient gets a chance to indicate whether he reviewed and understood the information. It is up to the practice whether to require this affirmation prior to giving the procedure.
The patient has now had ample opportunity to prepare for the procedure and can reference the information as many times as desired. The practice has a detailed record of which patients viewed and understood the preparation information.
Update Demographic Information
A patient wants to update her address, insurance, or other demographic information.
The Old Way
The patient calls the practice. Hopefully, he'll be able to speak directly to a scheduler but he may have to navigate an inefficient phone tree and wait on hold a few minutes. Also, the patient can only call during business hours. Once the patient reaches an operator, the transaction is completed.
The Better Way
The patient logs in to the patient portal and updates whatever information has changed. The practice is automatically notified!
The patient can make updates at any time of day, and can view all current records the practice has on file. Since updating information is so convenient and easy, the patient is also more likely to keep demographic information up to date.
Request a Prescription Renewal
A patient wants to request a prescription renewal.
The Old Way
The patient calls the practice. Hopefully, she'll be able to speak directly to a medical assistant but she may have to navigate an inefficient phone tree and wait on hold a few minutes. Alternatively, she might have to leave a message, with ample room for omission or garbled sound. In some cases, the patient can only call during business hours. Once the medical assistant speaks with the patient or picks up the message, the request is successfully routed.
The Better Way
The patient logs in to the patient portal, clicks "Renew My Prescription," selects the medication she'd like to renew, enters the pharmacy information, and clicks submit.
The patient also has a visual of the list of all medications she is currently prescribed from the practice, which leads to less confusion. Any practice-specific rules - for example, certain drugs will not be renewed without an appointment - can be built in to the patient portal, averting common questions for the practice.
Other Patient Requests
A patient wants to make some other request (e.g. for medical records) typically made by calling the practice.
The Old Way
The patient calls the practice and hopefully can navigate the phone tree quickly. Eventually the patient will reach the person he needs to speak with and will request the transaction.
The Better Way
Since the practice can create an online patient request form for virtually anything, the patient simply logs in to the patient portal, clicks the appropriate "Request a..." link, and fills out the form!
The patient avoids waiting on hold and knows exactly what information to communicate.
Pay a Bill
A patient wants to pay a bill.
The Old Way
A patient mails a physical check, or a patient calls over the phone and gives a credit card number.
The Better Way
A patient might still mail a check or make a phone call, or the patient could log in to the patient portal at any time of day, view her balance, enter a credit card number and submit payment.
Being able to log in and view the balance online will make it clear to the patient the amount owed. Being able to pay online will lower the energy required by the patient to submit a payment, and communicates explicitly to the patient that credit card is an accepted means of payment.
View Lab Results
A patient wants to view his lab results.
The Old Way
Assuming the lab results are normal, a patient either receives a phone call or a physical letter in the mail. If a phone call is made, hopefully the patient will answer. The patient may or may not have given permission to hear lab results in a phone message. If an automated system is used, the patient will have to authenticate himself and will hear an audio message only. If a letter is sent, it is unclear whether the patient actually received the letter.
The Better Way
The patient receives an email notification that his lab results are ready. He logs in to the Patient Portal, and view the lab results. The practice is made aware that the patient has viewed the lab results.