Since the beginning of COVID-19, US healthcare organizations saw a huge decrease in patient volume. Most of the patients canceled follow-up visits, preventive care, scheduled appointments, and refuse to visit directly to the clinic. Even though healthcare providers are adopted quality digital technology to improve patient engagement, the growing healthcare marketing trends are more important. Here are the best ways which explain how to instantly rebuild patient volume in 2021.

Patient Outreach

While healthcare organizations have had their realities thrown upside down, so have their patients. Frequent interactions with one’s healthcare provider are not on the front of their minds. For this reason, patient outreach is critical to increasing patient volume. Providers need to make sure they are reminding their patients that they are there for them during and after the pandemic and public health is your number one priority. The more reminders, newsletters, and messages you release will help your patients think more about their healthcare and the higher patient volumes you will achieve.

Increase Communication

Communication is everything. Increasing one-on-one communication with your patients is the surest way to make sure they are staying engaged. This should involve offering traditional communication tools like the patient portal, but also new technology innovations. Tools like chatbot software are helping providers increase communication with their patients without stretching themselves too thin. Designed to sound just like your practice, an automated tool ensures your patients are getting their questions answered and appointments scheduled.

Chronic Care Management

Chronic care management is more important now than ever before. As chronically ill patients fall into the high-risk category for COVID-19, they are having to avoid unsafe public environments. Many patients are struggling to keep up with the demands of their health in their lives. Chronic care management can help your organization continue to earn revenue chronic the CMS payment program, but also help patients stay on top of their health during this difficult era of their life.

Hospitals and medical practices are focusing their efforts on treating patients who suspect they might have COVID-19. To slow down the progression of the coronavirus until a solution is found, individuals are advised to stay home, practice social distancing, and avoid high-risk locations like medical facilities. Chronic Care Management makes it possible for these patients to follow these advisements as much as possible, minimizing the risk to themselves and others.

Chronic Care Management will continue to improve population health after the pandemic, allowing the millions of individuals in the United States who qualify to get the life-saving care they need and deserve.

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Telehealth Increases Patient Volume

Telehealth was widely adopted by healthcare professionals of all types during the pandemic. It has and continues to prove incredibly helpful in maintaining high patient volumes. As the pandemic continues to unfold and the aftermath is still unknown, digital solutions like this can help ensure your practice is still seeing patients.

While telehealth software adoption has seen a surge nationwide, many patient populations still lack the awareness and understanding to appropriately utilize them. Common challenges for telehealth visits are that patients may not have reliable internet access where they live, forget about their appointments, or have difficulty logging on if they don’t receive assistance and reminders.

Sending broadcast messaging to their entire patient population to explain their telehealth options and how to access them. This can be particularly effective in areas where internet access is poor, helping to bridge the gap in healthcare inequalities and reach more patients via their smartphones.

Offering patients the option to schedule an appointment with a telehealth provider using automated calls and text messages. These may include mental health appointments, which are surging due to heightened levels of stress, anxiety, and depression during COVID-19.

Letting patients know when their telehealth appointment is scheduled, how to access it, and any information they may need in advance to maximize their appointment time

Sending an automated reminder a few days before a patient appointment with an option to cancel or reschedule it, which frees up the time slot to be backfilled with another patient

Follow up with patients post-discharge or post-visit to ensure they understand and are adhering to their care plans, see if there are any issues they would like to discuss, and schedule a new appointment via telehealth software if needed

These conversations can all lead to more telehealth appointments being scheduled and documented with the appropriate CPT codes to receive reimbursement, without placing an additional burden on our already over-taxed nurses and healthcare workers.

Final Thoughts

While it is more important to rebuild your patient volume in 2021, it is also important to make use of the best tools and technologies for increasing patient volume. For assistance with improving patient collections, contact CapMinds medical billing and coding services today.