Two different procedures. Two different specialties. Two different patient communication approaches. Yet both practices use the same EHR and patient portal. 
Prep for surgery instructions. Paper. Branded folder to put the paper in. More paper on next visit. A call from practice confirming specific surgery time and then get transferred to recorded message with specific pre-surgery instructions. Day of surgery sent home with post-op instructions – more paper.
Prep for procedure instructions. Available on the patient portal under letters. Texts and emails sent with specific prep information. Timed texts and emails for each major step along a defined prep timeline. Post procedure summary and instructions given to me on paper and available on the portal.
Practice variation is real. At times, it’s required and makes sense given different specialties. But not always.
So how were these two different experiences from a patient communication perspective? For me, there is a comfort having paper – can easily refer to it when needed. That is, if you know where you put it – hence the branded folder they give you. In the other situation, there was a very prescribed set of timed pre-procedure steps so the texts/emails at specified times telling me what to do was helpful.
What wasn’t such a good patient experience? When I got the call and was transferred to the recorded message it wasn’t at a convenient time or place. I had just left the house so had to listen best I could while driving and try to remember the key points. There wasn’t an obvious way to proactively go to the recording once I got home and could take some notes. But this was the surgery with paper-based prep so most of it was in the paper instructions anyway. For the other scenario, the text messages included steps in the middle of the night for an early AM procedure. I had already set my alarm to wake up and do them so getting an additional text was not that much of a problem.
From a clinical perspective both the surgery and procedure went fine. I received excellent care from all involved.
With a CIO hat on, I question if these patient communication approaches are as integrated with the EHR and patient portal as they could be or are they a one-off. Are they as standardized and efficient as they could be for the clinicians and administrative staff? Are they easy and convenient for the patients?
We have come a long way with patient communication tools in recent years. But we need to ensure the automation still leaves room for personal connection when needed – someone to contact if questions aren’t in the standard FAQ online. Someone to contact if there are scheduling issues.
I wasn’t at HIMSS22 but checking the exhibitors online, I found 61 vendors listed in the Consumer/Connected Health Solutions – Patient Provider Platform and Portals category. They probably range from modules within core EHR vendors to very niche single solution products. This tells me it is still an evolving space.
I’m coming from the consumer side at this point. If you are on the solutions side from a provider organization or vendor, I’d love to hear your perspective and what you are doing to optimize patient communications.
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