Today's physicians are experiencing unprecedented burnout, financial pressures and workplace uncertainty. Some are retiring or closing their practices to become employed or have had their practices acquired by private equity firms. At the same time, physicians and practices are navigating the challenges of operating in a fee-for-service world while beginning value-based care arrangements. 

Keeping patients satisfied is a driving concern in healthcare today. Traditional healthcare providers face competition not just from other providers, but from new players in the consumer retail space and even pharmacies. In addition, patients increasingly expect convenient online access to healthcare, information and billing/financial services. 

Healthcare's affordability crisis is staggering — one in four patients put off care due to cost, and one in three working Americans have medical debt. Patients widely identify affordability as the single biggest problem with healthcare. Simultaneously, health systems are confronted with challenges related to patient affordability, care access and their own economic well-being.

Experience is a critical aspect of patient care and a key component of the Triple Aim, a framework focused on enhancing the care experience, improving population health and controlling costs.

Empathy has always been valuable in the patient-provider relationship.

Patients are reporting worse experiences receiving hospital-based care amid the pandemic for nine of 10 care domains measured by the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey, according to a May 10 report from the Leapfrog Group.

Patient experience is one of the most important benchmarks of success in healthcare. Organizations that offer digital convenience consistently see better outcomes and competitive advantages.

The pandemic has shined a light on some of  the weaknesses that were present in the healthcare system before the arrival of COVID-19. Across the nation, this has included an escalation of incidences of verbal and physical violence in healthcare settings. Behaviors that were becoming more common before the pandemic have now intensified as tempers and patience have grown short and divisions within our nation have persisted. 

Patient access is one of the thorniest problems in healthcare. When patients need to schedule an appointment or have another time-sensitive concern, ensuring such issues can be addressed in an efficient and standardized manner is a growing priority for healthcare organizations.

What keeps the doors of your health system open? Patients. Making and keeping them happy is critical. Unfortunately, staff burnout in healthcare can negatively affect the patient experience and jeopardize patient retention. 

As the U.S. enters year three of the pandemic, the healthcare workforce is still reeling from COVID-19’s impact.

ATLANTA, GA, May 2, 2022: iVitaFi, a leading non-recourse patient financing company, today announced the release of its new digital patient engagement and payment platform for hospitals and health systems, iVitaFiSM MyPlan.

Nearly two-thirds of family members restricted from visiting COVID-19 patients admitted to intensive care units suffered from stress-related disorders three months after the hospitalization, a study published April 25 in JAMA Internal Medicine found.

Health systems that have real-time data on patients' financial situations and engagement preferences can customize interactions with patients around bill payment.

Older Americans are experiencing racial and ethnic discrimination that is taking a toll on their health, according to an analysis released April 21 by the Commonwealth Fund. 

Last week, I did something I haven't done in a long time. I went in person to a professional conference. The meeting was the "ElevatePX" conference sponsored by The Beryl Institute, an organization dedicated to advancing the human experience in healthcare. The Beryl community is over 60,000 strong and is comprised of patient experience leaders, patient advocates and other organizations involved in patient experience work.

Health inequities have risen to the top of healthcare leaders' agendas, and organizations across the country are trying to determine the most effective ways to tackle one of the key issues: barriers to care access.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation into law April 6 that bars any healthcare facility in the state from restricting in-person visitation to patients.

Genomic testing has been used for years as a point solution in isolated clinical cases but is now increasingly viewed as a potential solution to health screening on a much larger scale.

Clinicians were less likely to report role misidentification while wearing role-identifier badges, a new study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings found.