If you haven’t yet already, please check out our previous blogs covering the first four best practices related to patient communications governance: Identify Existing – or Future – Challenges, Review the Current State of Patient Communications, Establish a Governance Committee and Defining Your Desired Outcomes.
JAMA Network Open research shows that patients who receive multiple text and interactive voice response (IVR) telephone messages from health systems are more likely to opt out of future messages. Researchers are now urging providers to “use these messages judiciously to minimize message fatigue.”
To do so, governance and orchestration are needed to ensure patients receive the most important communication at the right time, in the correct cadence and in their preferred channel. But, how can you feel confident about the effectiveness of your governance strategy? By building a healthcare analytics communication framework.
In this blog, we’ll dive into the fifth and final governance best practice: measure, iterate and improve. Let’s explore how building a healthcare analytics communication framework can help you achieve this goal.
Evaluating Your Communications Strategy Using Data and Analytics
At this stage in the governance journey, you have successfully established a team of stakeholders committed to the vision you’ve uniquely built for your organization. To optimize your messaging and drive value to your organization, data and analytics will be your new best friends.
Access to rich, intelligent analytics enables you to make data-driven decisions that inform your patient communications strategy and improve the patient experience.
With your governance team, it will be critical to implement various measurements to determine the effectiveness of your patient communications strategy and identify any overlooked gaps. This should be an ongoing process of continuous evaluation.
What is a Healthcare Analytics Communication Framework?
A healthcare analytics communication framework is essential for understanding and optimizing your patient engagement strategy. It involves collecting, analyzing and interpreting data related to patient communications, helping you track the success of your patient engagement efforts and ultimately make data-driven decisions for improvements.
How do you get started? By asking the right questions.
Data and insights are pivotal to optimizing your patient communications strategy.
For example, one Artera enterprise health system customer identified an opportunity to minimize message overload. After taking action, the organization saw an 80% decrease in the number of patients that received more than five messages in one hour due to merged booking remediation work.
Key Questions to Consider:
- Are We Achieving Our Desired Outcomes? Evaluate whether your patient communication investments are yielding the expected results and if they are doing so at a good value point.
- What Systems and Tools Are We Using? Identify the systems and tools employed to measure the effectiveness of those investments.
- How Are We Reporting These Metrics? Determine how frequently and effectively you are reporting out on these metrics.
- Can We Analyze Data Independently? Assess whether you can independently analyze data from the various tools you use.
- Are There Unmeasured Metrics? Identify any specific reports or metrics you wish you could measure but are currently unable to.
- What Outcomes Should We Focus On? Decide whether to concentrate on revenue, clinical outcomes, patient satisfaction, or other priorities.
Example Metrics to Track:
- Patient Response Rates: Track how patients respond to different types of messages. Are they responding to messages that are personalized or more simplistic in nature?
- Communication Load: Measure the number and frequency of messages sent to each patient in a given day, week, etc.
- Patient Opt-Out Rates: Monitor the rates at which patients opt-out of communications.
- Engagement Levels: Evaluate the effectiveness of communication channels and content in engaging patients.
“In many areas of healthcare – financial management, operations, etc. – our decision-making is driven by data and performance metrics; the same should be true for patient engagement.”
– Meg Aranow, SVP, Platform Evangelist, Artera
The Role of Technology in Patient Communications Governance
Leveraging a unified communication solution like Artera can provide enterprise-wide visibility, allowing healthcare providers to see every patient interaction and quickly identify over-communication. Artera Harmony, for example, offers features that support a cohesive healthcare governance structure by:
- Consolidating Communication Channels: Providing a single platform for managing all patient communications.
- Enhancing Coordination: Facilitating coordination among different departments and vendors.
- Streamlining Workflows: Automating redundant tasks and standardizing communication sequences.
- Ensuring Compliance: Aligning messaging practices with regulatory guidelines.
Ultimately, Artera acts as a single pane of glass for patient engagement, providing the visibility needed to manage communications effectively.
Measuring Success and Iterating to Improve
Implement measurements to evaluate the effectiveness of your strategy continuously. Use data analytics to make informed decisions and optimize your patient communications. Some steps to consider include:
- Regular Audits: Conduct periodic audits to ensure compliance and effectiveness.
- Patient Feedback: Actively seek and incorporate patient feedback to refine messaging strategies.
- Data-Driven Adjustments: Utilize analytics to identify trends and adjust strategies accordingly.
- Ongoing Training: Provide continuous training for staff to stay updated on best practices and new tools.
Final Thoughts
Building a cohesive governance structure for your health system is crucial for a stronger patient communications strategy. By leveraging data and analytics, healthcare professionals can make informed decisions that enhance the patient experience, improve operational efficiency and ensure compliance. Developing a robust healthcare analytics communication framework wraps up the final piece of a solid governance structure.
Now that you have gone through the process of building out a more cohesive governance structure for your health system, you can move toward your business goals with full confidence knowing you strategically mapped out a stronger patient communications strategy: one that supports and honors your patients and improves your outcomes.
