How Online Patient Appointment Schedulers Help You To Keep Your Schedule Fully Booked?
The medical industry has grown to be a vast industry today. The industry of healthcare is also dubbed as one of the fastest-growing industries to date. More than 14.3 million people are employed in the healthcare industry, as per the latest data of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and it is further estimated that this industry would bring forth close to 3.2 million new healthcare-related jobs in the next 8 years.
The gigantic industry that the healthcare industry is, surely has a huge opportunity for the newer hospital chains, clinics, and practices to grow to unprecedented heights, much like what happens in any other industries. However, not many of these medical care providers come to be known as successful enough in the long run. There might be a list of reasons why the healthcare sector, which is built to care for others, happens to be brutally intolerant of many newcomers that step in but the lack of patients is one of the prominent reasons.
Besides, the healthcare providers, which includes medical clinics and practices, today must be more informed about their patients and would understand and care for them more right from the moment they step in. Here's delving into the list of important factors why many of the newly established medical clinics and practices fail.
Reasons why most of the new healthcare service providers fail!
There are just way too many healthcare providers that have stood the test of time than can be mentioned in one article but the total number of healthcare startups that fail to see the light of the day is simply incalculable.
The lack of patients due to inefficient patient scheduling systems is surely one of the most prominent causes behind the failure of these new healthcare providers that we will discuss here in this article but apart from that, there are plenty of other reasons too. The below-mentioned reasons not only restrict newcomers in the medical industry but had also resulted in wiping them off completely from the industry.
Some of these reasons why many healthcare startups fail to stand the test of time:
Booking failures
Patient booking is the primary step that the patients take and here if they fall too slow, fail to get booked, or are properly informed about their bookings, then that is a great blunder indeed on behalf of the practice. This is the reason why the medical appointment scheduling software is being installed in most of the current medical facilities that are operating today.
Lack of technological advancements
In this fast-paced age that we are living it is true that we ought to thrive with technology. Not only that, but we also need to be well-versed in the technologies of the age and always on the hunt for everything new when it comes to technology. This is more than true if you are associated with a business. For instance, if you are a manager or owner of a healthcare practice.
Yes, with surrounding technology fuelled by the internet, you need to have the latest online doctor appointment scheduling facilities, online patient check-ins, patient intakes, online payment systems, followups, and more online. If that's not possible, then sorry because the next moment might find you out of the game. However, with the advanced online patient bookings, medical appointment scheduling software, along with secure HIPAA-compliant two-way texting methods, and more, GrowPractice will never let you forget the position in the healthcare industry that you have always envied.
Lack of efficient staff
Medical staff are leaving at an alarming rate and this has been more of a widespread phenomenon after the outbreak of the COVID-19 disease. According to the estimates of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the medical sector has lost almost 500K workers since February 2020. These medical staff are quitting leaving a void truly in the case of most of the medical practices.
However, the lack of staff can still be balanced if your practice is equipped with cutting-edge medical appointment scheduling software, online patient check-in processes, online payment methods, and effective follow-up processes that GrowPractice brings your way. Besides, another option to hire efficient medical workers is always with you if you want that.
Less patient engagement
Booking of patient appointments is not the be-all and end-all of the patient's journey but just the start of it. As soon as the patient enters a medical facility it is true that they need to be engaged
Polite patient greetings, upfront patient check-ins, proactive information of the wait times and the length of the appointment and the charges, and efficient followups also form the core of the patient's journey today. Here if your practice isn't bothered much about the patient engagement then that can seriously affect the patient experience and the practice growth as well.
Long wait times
The wait times have been the root cause for the loss of as many as 75% of the customers in a business. These wait times can be truly detrimental also for your practice. However, GrowPractice has a solution here too. It knows that around 80% of the patients prefer to complete pre-visit registration paperwork before they enter a medical unit, which is why it brings unique paperless patient intake forms along with fast and online check-ins to reduce the wait time of the patients.
Lack of online payment methods
The payments from the patients are what help the practices to earn their revenues. Even in this segment, the online methods discernibly triumph. Where the age-old payment methods almost always end up being time-consuming and risky, the new-age payment methods where customers pay online, help the practices collect payments swiftly and easily without losing out on their revenues.
GrowPractice's secure online payment methods are certainly revolutionizing the healthcare industry and have already increased the collection rates of the practices by 20% to date.
Some other reasons for the failure of the new healthcare facilities are:
Though the other reasons are as potent as the patient appointment process or rather the lack of it, making a doctors' appointment online is the call of the age.
Why to make the doctors appointment online via improved patient scheduling systems?
A patient appointment is one of the most crucial steps in the patients' journey if not the most important step. Booking of patients' appointments is the first thing that the patients go for while they are looking to see a doctor and this is why it is not harmful if a practice is a little too finicky with this process.
Though the practices of now are highly informed about the latest medical office software, systems, and technologies, doctor appointment scheduling is often the segment where most of the practices score less. Making the whole thing online may work wonders for today's practices.
We have gone through several studies, most of which reveal that the patients prefer the online method in contrast to the age-old system of bookings appointments via phones or physically at the clinics. A recent survey reflected that around 80% of patients would choose a physician who offers online scheduling methods for booking patients' appointments across both primary care and specialist physicians. Therefore, it's time for revamping the patient scheduling system back at your practice too.
Here are some reasons why most of the practices are making doctors appointments online for the patients:
Patients love the online method
The online software and medical office systems have been proven to be hugely efficient. Around 68% of patients have been proven to choose the medical care providers that offer them the ability to book, change, and cancel appointments online. Therefore, it will certainly be helpful for the practices if they go for the online patient scheduling system.
Saves time for the patients and medical workers
The online system of patient appointment bookings is undoubtedly wonderful time-savers for the practices. The medical appointment scheduling software that GrowPractice brings in the medical practices of today helps them save time for the patients along with cutting the time short for the medical workers as well, who can then be assigned other tasks in the spare time they go!
Doctor appointment scheduling can be done 24*7 online
Patient appointments are more than useful for the medical facilities because they are the ones who help the medical practices earn their revenues. Therefore, it is important that the patient appointments need to be booked fast and it should be an efficient process, which can be followed by the practice owners, managers, or any other medical staff in the practice. Furthermore, the patient appointments should be booked right then and there.
According to the recent survey it has been found that more than 1/3rd of patient appointments are booked outside of the normal business hours. This is where GrowPractice's effective medical scheduling software comes to play in order to improve the medical offices of the present.
Enhances patient experience
By making your practice equipped with the latest medical software and systems that would help your practice book the patient appointments efficiently along with making patient check-ins and followups fast and simple, you can hope for changing the patient experiences for good. GrowPractice would help you get the best medical office software that would further make your patients' journey hassle-free, thereby improving patient satisfaction.
Patient scheduling software reduces no shows
It has been seen that the healthcare industry is losing more than $150 billion a year due to the exceeding amount of no-shows that the hospitals and clinics are seeing today. Many of these patient no-shows occur due to the inability of the practices to let the patients book, change or cancel their appointments online but this is what you can easily offer the patients on behalf of your practice with the help of an effective online patient scheduling software from GrowPractice. The leading medical office software provider has already made an 89% reduction in no-shows possible for the practices!
Improves workflow
Patient appointments when made online can drastically reduce the time taken to schedule the patient appointments, which would thereby help in bringing in enhanced workflow in your practice. Therefore, if improving patient workflow was insanely tough for your practice, then you can easily reach out to GrowPractice to improve it instantly while boosting patient engagement and revenues.
Boosts practice revenue
Practice revenues depend on a series of factors including how patients' appointments are booked and how they are engaged. Therefore, if you are using online patient scheduling systems and improved software to streamline the patient appointments procedure, then you are already a step ahead, otherwise, you can always connect to GrowPractice to make online doctor appointment scheduling possible in your practice.
Make a doctors appointment efficient and fully booked online!
Now, if you are already having online patient appointment booking systems at your practice or you are willing to go make doctor's appointment booking possible online but you are still worrying that you might not get many patients that way. Furthermore, if you are concerned about the loss of revenues afterward, then worry not because here we have also brought to you some efficient tips and tricks to make the doctor appointment scheduling fully booked online:
The booking portal should be fast
A fast and effective booking portal should be the priority if you are going for online patient appointment bookings. GrowPractice knows your requirements, which is why it adds the speed you desire to steer past your rivals and book patients flawlessly without letting them wait.
Make it scalable with future upgrades and changes
Whenever you go for software or embrace new-age technologies, you need to make sure that it is scalable. This is why GrowPractice brings patient online booking software and systems that are future-proof and adequately upgradable.
Make the process simple for all
The patient scheduling system that is in practice back at your clinic should be easy to use for the patients as well as the medical workers at your practices. This will help the patients and the other healthcare staff book the appointments of the patients without worry!
Keep it on 24*7
Online patient booking process that gives the patients the freedom to book their appointments at any time of the day always works best for the practices. 24/7 online patient scheduling software from Growpractice will thus help you get an edge over your peers and rivals with the help of which you can easily improve your patient satisfaction and provide the care that the patients need without bothering them much!
Monitor the performance online
The performance of the medical office software should be monitored regularly. This will not only help you understand how they are functioning but also will help you figure out unique methods of boosting their functioning online.
Adopt the patient-first approach
Making the appointments and other processes patient-first should be the motto of the healthcare service providers. It has been already discovered that 68% of the patients want to book appointments online. Furthermore, it has also been found that more than half of the millennials and the Gen X people might also switch providers to be able to book appointments online. Therefore, making the whole process by keeping the patients and their convenience in mind would help practices greatly here!
Keep an eye on the security
The whole process, as it shall be followed at practices should be secure. However, with the GrowPractice medical office software and patient appointment scheduling systems you can rest assured of getting advanced multi-layered security and HIPAA compliance.
Prioritize appointments in real-time
Medical appointment scheduling software can certainly make the patient appointment booking process a breeze but along with that, it is also great if your practice has real-time monitoring systems of the patients' appointments.
Schedule effective appointment reminders
Booking patient appointments online might sound to be a real deal but with the emergence of GrowPractice, it would be less than a hassle. However, you still need to keep the patients aware and informed about their appointments. GrowPratice would help you even here with its latest patient reminders.
Choose the Trusted Medical Office, Patient Appointment Schedulers, and More from GrowPractice!
While you are looking to revamp your medical office and grow your revenues along with enhancing the patient experiences, then you also need to adopt a trustworthy medical office service provider. Here is where you need to choose GrowPractice simply because it is a market leader and is trusted for its genuine solutions that have already made a difference in the medical landscape!
The effective patient appointment scheduling processes from GrowPractice would:
Help you auto-fill rescheduled or canceled patient appointments
Streamline the visits of the patients online during their visits or beforehand
Help you actively engage with your patients via HIPAA-compliant two-way texting system
GrowPractice is integrated with over 65 EHR/PM software that are trusted around the world to make things easier and hassle-free at your medical office. You would enjoy all of these and more with GrowPractice. It has already helped practices witness a 48% increase in repeat patients and patient retention and over an 8% increase in new patients and appointments. So, hurry up and grow your practice without any hassles!
