Customer Service at My Doctor’s Office – What?!
Following is an intriguing article written by Casey Quinlan about doctor appointments. It seems like an efficient idea – what do yhou think?
I’ll state here that I have stellar doctors and my primary Dr. Karen Eady, Bremerton and pulmonary Dr. Christopher Goss, University of Washington Medical Center are without peer. I know my medical care health is in good hands and know how lucky I am.
I think the following article “I have a dream” is an interesting
concept. What do you think?
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All I Want for Christmas Is Customer Service at My Doctor’s
Office
December 24th, 2010
By Casey Quinlan. I have this dream. It’s about how, when I make an
appointment to see my doctor – my primary care physician – the
process is easy, honors my time as much as it does my doctor’s, and
winds up running smoothly for both parties.
The dream starts this way: I realize it’s time for my annual
physical, or any other usual-suspects periodic visit to my PCP. I
open up my browser, point it to my doctor’s website, and log in to
the secure patient portal. The one where I can see all my
prescriptions, my personal health record, make an appointment
(using the handy calendar function), request a prescription refill,
ask the nurse or doctor a question via email, or download a PDF of
my health record.
In my dream, using the handy scheduling function in the portal, I
select a date and time for my appointment. The portal
auto-populates that date and time with my name and
insurance/contact information, since I logged in and it knows who I
am. The system asks me if any information has changed. I click
“no”. If I click “yes,” the next screen asks me to make the
changes, and “submit”.
I select “annual physical” from the list of appointment types. I
enter any information I need to related to this appointment request
(i.e. “Doctor, I have this pain…”). Then I click “submit” and the
system sends me a confirmation email or text (I picked which one I
prefer when I set up my profile on the portal). It also schedules
me for a blood draw in the week prior to the appointment, sending
me a confirmation for a walk-in at the lab.
The scene in my dream shifts to the day of my doctor’s appointment.
I’m scheduled to be seen at 11:00am. I get a text at 10:00am – or
an email, whichever I selected when setting up my portal profile –
saying that the doctor’s running about 30 minutes behind. I can
either come in at 11:30am, or select one of the alternate
appointment times in the text/email and be re-scheduled.
I select 11:30am, and I arrive a few minutes before that time.
Signing in involves scanning a key tag – just like the one you get
from your favorite supermarket – which lets everyone in the
practice, from the receptionist to the doctor, know that I’m there,
and on time.
If the administrative staff needs to talk to me for any reason,
they’ll see me on their screen (usually because, in the day-before
review, they checked the “confirm insurance details” or “update
pharmacy info” or “collect co-pay” radio button) and invite me to
have a private conversation. By using my first name only. No
sign-in sheet (HIPAA violation) or yodeling my full name across a
crowded waiting room (HIPAA violation).
By the way, in my dream the co-pay is collected by the system
without having to get me or the staff involved. I’ve given the
practice my credit/debit card number, and signed a consent form to
allow automatic collection of my payment when I scan my key
tag.
I take a seat in the waiting room…for about 5 minutes. I’m called –
first name only – by the nurse, who takes me back to an exam room.
I scan my key tag again in the room, and s/he checks my blood
pressure, temperature, and heart rate using equipment tied into the
practice’s IT network. Since my key tag was scanned, the readings
are loaded into my record instantly.
S/he and I chat for a minute or two, and then I’m left alone to
disrobe. The doctor arrives minutes later, and proceeds with my
exam. S/he enters information on an iPad, but spends most of the
time talking to me about how I’m feeling lately, the results from
my blood work, what my exercise program is these days, how about
those Giants/Redskins/Bears/whoever, and if I’ve had any meds
side-effects that I haven’t mentioned.
The doctor tells me that my blood work shows everything’s A-OK, all
my numbers look good. I’m up a few pounds, time to hit the gym a
little harder to stop midriff-creep in its tracks. (It’s a dream,
but it could become a nightmare.)
Face time. Real face time. Only about 10 minutes, yet I feel like
I’ve been listened to, and engaged with, by my doctor. I feel like
I’m a customer, not a meat-puppet on a conveyor belt.
Ok, I’m awake now. In a world where all of the technology tools to
turn my dream into reality exist…but aren’t being used. Why not?
Usually, I hear “they’re too expensive” or, my personal favorite,
“my staff doesn’t like computers.”
Here’s the choice: either bring your staff up to speed or see
your revenues shrink. If a practice uses patient-facing technology
well, they’re in a good position for better revenue cycle
management. If the practice is looking to move some of its patient
panel to a subscription/concierge model, this dream MUST become
reality.
It’s time for some technology-enabled customer service in primary
care. That’s my dream, and I’m sticking’ to it!
http://www.disruptivewomen.net/2010/12/24/all-i-want-for-christmas-is-customer-service-at-my-doctor%E2%80%99s-office/
More later… Sharon O’Hara
I’ve had dreams too. I usually can tell the difference between them and reality though. It’s pretty amusing that she whines about HIPAA violations, while remaining blithely unaware of the potential of HIPAA violations and serious security problems in her ‘dream’.
Thanks for helping spread the word, Sharon!
And Derek, as a healthcare communication consultant, I’m not at all unaware – blithely or otherwise – about HIPAA compliance rules. The dream above could be effected without compromising one bit/byte of personal health information. The banking and financial services industry does it every day, as do every big retailer across the US.