Patient Outreach 2016
Driving Outcomes – From No-Shows to Better Health

1. CIPHERHEALTH, EMMI, AND IBM (PHYTEL) PROVIDE MOST CLINICALLY FOCUSED TOOLS

Clinicians use CipherHealth Voice to reduce readmissions by surveying patients to monitor recovery and assess patient satisfaction. Providers using Emmi's interactive videos and other mediums for pre-visit patient education say the content helps set patient expectations and ensure that protocols are followed leading up to a surgery. Providers leverage IBM's analytics tools to identify at-risk populations and encourage patients to come in for preventive visits.

2. TALKSOFT'S COLLABORATIVE ENGAGEMENT HELPS PROVIDERS DRIVE OUTCOMES

Talksoft readily shares best practices, offers in-depth training, and partners closely with providers to help them find additional use cases for the system, which helps them reduce no-shows and increase the amount of preventive care they provide. Providers say CipherHealth proactively reaches out to assess provider needs and is responsive to feedback. West HouseCalls customers say they would like their vendor to share best practices and possible use cases more proactively. PhoneTree customers say their vendor is reactive and that the relationship needs improvement..

3. SOLUTIONREACH'S NEXT-GENERATION TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS FOR ROBUST UTILIZATION BY ENTIRE CARE TEAM

Solutionreach users, who are often quality staff and care managers, primarily leverage interactive texts and phone calls to engage with patients both before and after appointments. Talksoft and CipherHealth users use more communication mediums per customer than other customer bases, using the solution to help with care management and quality control. Emmi's patient education and outreach tools allow clinicians and care managers to engage with patients at a deeper level both before and after procedures. Providers say that IBM (Phytel) makes it simple for them to coordinate preventive care and awareness campaigns, saving care managers time.

4. AN EARLY LOOK: EMR SOLUTIONS ARE VIABLE OPTIONS, BUT FUNCTIONALITY GAPS EXIST

EMR vendors also offer options for patient outreach—most notably patient portals. Providers cite benefits like EMR integration, two-way communication, and a deeper focus on patient-physician relationships. Gaps around appointment reminders, analytics, and communication mediums are common, though Greenway and NextGen offer traditional outreach tools. KLAS did not formally rate EMR vendors, but the following perspective is based on outreach- and portal-related commentary from 150+ organizations.

Bottom Line on Vendors