Succeeding Through the COVID-19 Surge via Patient Communication Tools

Cooler weather has sent the masses indoors, and not unexpectedly, COVID-19 cases have surged to some of the highest levels of the pandemic. And while the vaccine is making its rounds, experts warn that case numbers will continue to stay high throughout the winter.

For healthcare practices, this surge in cases creates challenges—especially for specialties (such as aesthetics) that may not be considered an “essential business.” With restrictions and lockdowns always looming, there is a chance you may have to alter processes, quarantine employees, or even be required to close completely. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to keep money coming in, regardless of what may be happening around you.

Leverage Technology

Leveraging technology—especially patient communication tools—is a critical part of this process. Savvy practices have been treating technology like another employee, one that works 24/7, never gets sick, never needs to quarantine, and never complains. This reduces the burden on the rest of the staff: covering gaps when employees call in sick, providing a way to complete critical tasks from home, improving safety and sanitation, keeping the practice functioning.

Here are a few specific ways you should use patient communication tools to succeed through the surge.

Automate your appointment reminders. During the pandemic, no practice is ever certain they will be fully staffed each day. Manually calling each patient to remind him/her of an appointment may not be possible. Unfortunately, patients need reminders or they are highly likely to forget to show up at all—costing everyone. Automating your appointment reminders is nice any time of the year, but critical during a COVID-19 surge.

Automate your recall messages. If things become stressful or busy in the office, recall efforts will probably be one of the first things to go. This can lead to big losses down the line, however. It is important to keep the “long game” for your practice front of mind. Automating your recall messages will help ensure your business keeps running smoothly for months to come.

Utilize online scheduling. The average phone call to schedule an appointment takes eight minutes, according to Accenture. Those calls can add up. Use online scheduling to reduce this busywork. You can send links to your online scheduling tool if someone texts you asking for an appointment. Online scheduling helps fill up holes in the schedule. During a COVID-19 surge, when the cancellation and reschedule rates go way up, online scheduling can be a godsend. Studies show that the majority of appointments via online scheduling are for the same day or the next day.

Offer digital intake. In addition to making your office more safe and sanitary, using a digital intake process saves everyone a lot of headaches. It can eliminate human errors (that get a lot worse during stressful times) that can cause denials in claims. It streamlines processes. It also reduces patient stress. They prefer being able to complete their intake forms before arriving for an appointment.

Take advantage of two-way texting. Two-way texting is literally changing the way practices communicate with patients in real-time. Texts are faster and easier than phone calls. Quarantined staff members can text patients from home.

Be Flexible and Innovative

Create a list of ways your staff members (including physicians) can use technology to complete work from home. Think about it. An appointment could be scheduled online, an automated reminder sent, and a team member could send digital intake forms and payment requests from home. The physician could greet the patient at the office or meet via telehealth. Beyond the actual visit, team members could complete other tasks from home with communication tools: request overdue balances, text patients, data entry, and more.

If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it is the importance of being flexible and innovative. Technology has given the healthcare industry the ability to expand their practice beyond the walls of their offices.