Patient access to care can be best improved by technology in the coming year, hospital leaders said in a report by the Center for Connected Medicine and KLAS Research published Dec. 7.
The new "Top of Mind for Top Health Systems" report included interviews with 72 leaders across U.S health systems.
Access to care for patients was revealed as an extremely high priority among health systems, with 99 percent of leaders saying that improving access is a high or very high priority. A key strategy in making this improvement will be technological, with more than 85 percent of health systems saying that their system is likely to invest in patient access technology.
Among the strategies to improve patient access, telehealth services and patient reminders were named as the most utilized. Ninety-two percent of respondents said they use telemedicine as a digital solution to patient access. Telehealth was also seen as the most impactful solution in providing greater access to care. Other most-used solutions included an online provider directory (91 percent), online bill paying (89 percent) and patient education (73 percent).
"We're acknowledging the need to engage with consumers earlier in the care journey if we're going to improve health and wellness. In order to accomplish this, health care needs to do a better job of meeting patients where they are — whether that's in the digital world or by making it easier to schedule and access in-person care," said Rob Bart, MD, chief medical information officer at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.