Patient Friendly Communications (Part 1)
For the past decade, health systems have endeavored to improve patient communications. Historically, patients have lacked an understanding of the complicated medical codes and terminology associated with their illness. Simply put, patients want to be able to understand:
- WHO performed the service
- WHAT was performed, in plain English
- WHERE the service occurred
- WHY the procedure was needed
- WHEN the service occurred
In this four part series, we will review the problems with patient communications, how to improve them by making them more patient friendly, and alternate forms of patient communications. In part one, we discuss the implications of poor patient communications and the potential benefits of providing patient friendly communications, beginning at the initial, pre-service encounter.
We can start improving patient understanding by getting rid of alphabet soup. We are so accustomed to DRG codes, we expect our patients to understand them as well. As simple as this seems, 2 years ago I participated in a focus research group to discuss medical billing. One out of the twelve participants didn’t know what an EKG was. When explained that it was an electrocardiogram, he first asked what the K was for, why he needed it and lastly, what did the test results provide.
Another participant vented about the costs of an EKG procedure, for his physician did not know this patient’s insurance capacity and the patient ended up paying the entire cost. His insurance did not cover an EKG for a well care visit. The patient was there because his wife wanted him to have a checkup; he felt healthy and had no complaints. Could it have been handled differently? The bottom line for part one is that we need to communicate early what services the physician is recommending, why he or she believes the patient needs them, explain the procedure in plain English and then have his or her staff prepare them for the financial implications before the procedure.
The results for part one will have benefits to both the patient and the healthcare provider. The patient will be more satisfied with his healthcare encounter and will better understand his/her treatment and statement. The healthcare provider will benefit in:
- A decrease in A/R days, since the patient bill will now provide clearly defined services
- An increase in cash flow
- A decrease in write offs and bad debt
Other indirect benefits for the healthcare provider could be:
- An increase in productivity by doing it “right” the first time
- An increase in employee satisfaction by not hearing continual patient complaints
Conclusion: Spending more time on the pre-service encounter by providing plain language explanation for services and financial counseling will result in increased payments, patient satisfaction and improved efficiencies.
We pride ourselves on getting the details right. For more information, visit our website at www.highcottonusa.com or call 877-838-2345.
