Today’s digital-first consumers say the internet plays a significant role in their search for care, with nearly 60% of people looking online to find healthcare providers, services and care sites. People are relying on healthcare organization websites, health plan websites, and search engines to find care.
The top places people search for care online are healthcare organization and health plan websites. But when people find discrepancies in provider information between these sites, it can cause confusion. That’s especially problematic for integrated delivery networks (IDNs) that many identify as a single brand.
In our recent Thinc360 webinar, industry experts shared new opportunities for IDNs to create consistent experiences to help people seamlessly navigate care, regardless of where they start their search within the network. Matthew Tran, Senior Director, Member Experience and Innovation at Centene; Mark Menton, General Manager of HealthSparq; and, Matt Parker, Senior VP of Product for both Kyruus and HealthSparq, provided attendees with three main takeaways:
Cross-channel Collaboration is Key
All industries strive to create a seamless user experience–and healthcare is no different. When it comes to looking for care online, people rely on both health system and health plan websites for IDNs, collaborating to create seamless experiences is critical because it drives demand for your in-system providers while helping members make the most of their benefits by staying in-network for care. Creating unified, cross-channel experiences requires not only collaboration, but organizational investment in a robust provider data management system that both sides of the house can leverage.
Consistency Boosts Trust
When consumers encounter inaccurate or inconsistent data, their trust in your organization plummets and it is difficult—maybe even impossible—to restore. IDNs are in a unique position to build trust with people by not only maintaining an accurate ‘source of truth’ for all provider, service, and location information, but also offering richer data that can help people find the best provider and the best care for their unique needs and preferences. All the data exists within the IDN, it just needs to be brought together and delivered to both the plan and the system sides.
Convenience is Crucial
Imagine finding the perfect provider after scouring several profiles, only to find that you have to call during business hours to make an appointment. It happens all too often and is something IDNs can avoid by integrating a centralized online scheduling solution into the organization’s health system and health plan directories. In addition to adding convenience to the care search experience, this additional step helps drive demand for in-network care, which benefits the IDN and helps people maximize their plan benefits.
Watch the webinar replay and start to build your solution blueprint that bridges care access across the channels.
