When choosing a healthcare provider, many patients are easily turned off by complicated customer service interactions, causing them to favor certain providers over others. COVID-19 has also caused a significant increase in the use of telehealth options over the past year, which means that both patients and providers have had to shift to processing transactions online. Although these introduce more conveniences, they have also created pain points for patients.
For instance, many patients complain about their inability to pay without experiencing unfavorable interest rates, causing them to pay more than expected. They also complain about the lack of user-friendly billing portals or limits to accepted payment types. Providers have also had their fair share of operational challenges that compromise the patient experience, such as difficulty finding payments and matching them to clients, or problems processing quick refunds to patients. However, there are several ways to drive additional revenue by improving your patients’ financial experience Here’s how:
1. Make Payment Platforms Easily Accessible
With Credence Global Solutions’ iConnect, patients receive a text on their phone that takes them directly to their patient portal. There’s no need for them to go to a computer, or even remember their password. The text notification takes them directly to their personalized patient portal. Your healthcare organization can quickly and easily ask patients to pay a bill while they’re sitting on the comfort of their couch at home. No lines at the reception desk in your office, and no need to make them boot up their desktop, although they can access their portal from a desktop computer if they so choose.
2. Send Notifications Like Clockwork
Patients will be much better about paying a bill that comes to them when they expect it. By automating the billing process, not only do you take the pressure off your staff to keep up with paperwork, but you establish a routine for your patients. For patients, this helps reduce their stress and improve their financial experience. For staff, by taking the additional accounting tasks off of them, they will be able to focus on improving care and relationships with patients, which improves patient retention.
3. Allow More Payment Options
Gone are the days of filling out checks and licking stamps. Credence Global Solutions’ iConnect is an advanced patient engagement platform that offers a robust selection of payment options. Credit card, debit card, ACH—patients can choose from any number of payment types that suit them. Don’t have the entire amount today? Instead of paying in full, patients can pay a partial amount, or even choose a payment plan.
4. Provide Complete Access to Payment Tracking
Patients also need to have the ability to monitor when funds are on the move, whether that’s outgoing payments or incoming reimbursements, through the entire duration of each transaction they make. Both the patient and provider can check a payment’s status online, reducing the time-consuming paperwork and anxiety that often comes with verifying transactions.
Drive Revenue with iConnect
Addressing your patients’ pain points is crucial in maintaining loyal customers and thriving as a practice or facility. While you may be offering top-tier healthcare, your patients may be less inclined to do business with you if the financial experience is subpar. By addressing these, you’ll enjoy a smoother payment process and increased revenue.
The ultimate way to improve your patient’s financial experience is to turn to a full-featured patient engagement platform like iConnect. This highly-customizable platform is crucial to improving your patients’ experience during the payment process. It’s also a cost-effective finance and accounting support solution. By letting our platform handle patient collections for you, you enable your staff to concentrate on what they do best.
Improve profitability, accelerate cash, and enhance revenue streams from patients and out-of-network payers with iConnect. It’s the perfect solution for medical groups, diagnostic labs, and medical transport organizations. Contact us today for a demonstration!
