According to a Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) stat poll conducted in December 2022, 64% of providers noted that access and scheduling are their top priorities in improving the patient experience in 2023.
Where are you today in making it easier for patients to schedule appointments?
Patient self-scheduling is a win-win for everyone. When staff can avoid phone tag, they can focus more on patients’ care needs. This especially rings true for practices with an understaffed front office.
Help patients help themselves
Self-scheduling enables people to set appointments on their own—anytime, anywhere. In an October 2022 MGMA stat poll, 66% of the 494 practices surveyed implemented online patient self-service solutions. The remaining practices noted they’re considering adopting these solutions next year.
Real-time patient self-scheduling:
- Offers people convenient and flexible access to care via a link from your website
- Allows them to make appointments 24/7 and receive confirmations
- Supports appointment rescheduling and cancellations to reduce no-shows
Why this is important
Patients expect the scheduling experience to be as easy as requesting a ride with Lyft or Uber. When they think about setting an appointment, they go to their phone, access their medical provider’s website, and arrange an appointment. Setting an appointment over the phone during business hours is a thing of the past.
Think of the difference it’ll make when your patients can use step-by-step scheduling on their phones. This gives them 24/7 appointment access and flexibility to change appointments, and improves clinical and financial outcomes by filling in gaps in your clinicians’ schedules.
Practices, particularly those working with less staff, can alleviate stress with a self-scheduling solution. Not only will it reduce front-desk call volume, save time, and fill provider schedules, appointment scheduling information will flow seamlessly into the electronic health record (EHR) and practice management (PM) platform.
What’s next?
When resources are stretched to the limit during a busy office visit season, your care team needs the best technology to work smarter, not harder. When patients can make appointments online for vaccinations and other treatments, your staff will experience fewer frustrations from phone tag, no-shows, and schedule mix-ups. The bottom line is you can be more optimistic when facing seasonal health concerns such as the tripledemic (flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)) with NextGen® Self-Scheduling powered by Luma. Allow patients to schedule appointments via text or web, cancel and reschedule with ease, stay informed with automated reminders, and join a waitlist to get notified of sooner appointment times.
To learn more about patient self-scheduling, contact us at 855-510-6398 or results@nextgen.com. You can explore other time-saving patient engagement solutions in the e-book Harmonize Your Healthcare: Providers and Patients Unite.
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