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Use Social Media to Measure Consumer Feedback of Healthcare Providers
Consumers are looking to online reviews to make decisions on all facets of their lives, from hotels and restaurants to car purchases and vacation destinations. So it is only fitting that medical patients have been increasingly searching online and social media reviews to make decisions on which providers, hospitals, or medical facilities they will use. Online reviews provide an unedited view into the patient experience from the source. While hospital surveys still provide important data on providers and facilities, tracking online reviews can arm organizations with information to increase the patient experience and draw more consumers to these providers.
CAHPS Surveys Serve an Important Purpose
All health systems currently use mandated versions of CAHPS surveys to gather patient feedback on their hospital experience. While this information is valuable, patients are asked selective questions and the data is recorded. This format supports standardization across the nation to understand performance on a more level field and also provides opportunities for benchmarking and tracking quality improvements. What is not being captured is the patient’s broader experience with a provider in their office, during appointments and follow-up visits. Could they get an appointment in a timely fashion? The doctors provided them care and were pleasant but did they listen to their questions and spend time addressing their concerns? Gathering and measuring unsolicited reviews provides an opportunity for your providers and organization to include the consumer’s voice via blogs, social media, and third party review sites such as Healthgrades.com.
The Next Step in Provider Analytics: Introducing the EchoPSI Profile
Echo’s PSI Profile is the first standardized, real-time physician analysis based on attributes patients consider when choosing a physician (Source: https://www.binaryfountain.com/provider-social-index/). Echo has partnered with Binary Fountain to provide healthcare executives with a solution to capture online reviews about their providers. Binary’s proprietary algorithm monitors patient feedback from surveys, online ratings and review sites, social media, and other data sources to provide a profile to reflect consumer feedback on providers including attitude, time spent, thoroughness, clarity, and follow-up (see graphic).
With information gathered from Binary Fountain, EchoPSI Profile compiles a dashboard of actionable data to identify many key factors. This information allows leaders to identify providers with higher or lower ratings, review comparative reports between providers within similar specialties or departments, and understand the patient experience to improve internal processes.
The integrated reporting functionality includes the ability to identify high and low performers. Comparative reporting between providers of similar specialties or departments can be easily accomplished to identify benchmarks and thresholds. The capability to view how providers are perceived by consumers in comparison to others within an organization can provide valuable feedback and metrics. The PSI information can be used to equip health systems, hospitals, and others with the actionable insights needed to increase patient engagement, improve operations, recognize strengths, and identify opportunities for improvement. This data can be included in initial and re-credentialing activities, as well as Ongoing and Focused evaluations (OPPE and FPPE).
This blog post excerpts an article in the Q3 2016 issue of Provider Advisor. Complete the form below to download the issue.